The True, Twisted Tale of the Deceitful Danny Desai
by DJNS
Summary: This story is what I like to call a Twisted reboot. There were many things I loved about the show and many things I didn't. This is Twisted, my way. Danny Desai is free after spending five years locked up for murder but everything is not as it seems.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Daniel "Danny" Desai contemplated his reflection in the grimy mirror of the gas station bathroom where he and his mother had made their latest pit stop. The face staring back at him had not changed in any dramatic way since the last time he'd caught a glimpse of himself and yet, as always, it seemed somehow unrecognizable. Though it had been five unspeakable years, he hadn't stopped hoping to catch a glimpse of the child he had once been, the eleven year old boy who'd once harbored hope for a future poised with brightness and possibility. What he saw instead was a world weary sixteen year old who had faith in very little, particularly those who claimed to love him. The wide eyed wonder of his youth had long since faded.

Gone were his sparkling, innocent eyes filled with merriment and mischief. Now they were hooded, jaded and perpetually wary. A future that had once been filled with promise was now fraught with pitfalls. At eleven, he had been fresh-faced and guileless, the very image of an inexperienced choir boy. Now, at sixteen, he looked every inch the impenitent felon he was believed to be. His hair had grown long and unkempt in the past five years and had given itself over to a riotous tendency to curl. Even confined in a haphazard topknot, messy locks of dark brown hair managed to escape their band and frame his face in wavy tendrils.

In addition to his hair, he had also managed, much to his mother's everlasting dismay, to slip away and get his ear pierced sometime during their tense road trip. Danny admired the piercing in the mirror and ran his index finger along the delicate edge of the glinting, gold hoop. He had decided to be non-traditional and get the outer shell of his ear pierced rather than the lobe, though getting the lobe done was still a possibility...maybe his eyebrow, nose and _tongue_ too if he felt like it. Not that he was truly all that eager to mutilate his tongue but...it might just be worth it to horrify his mother. Danny smirked to himself when he recalled Karen Desai's galled expression when he sat down across from her at breakfast the morning after his piercing.

"Oh my God..." she had uttered in disbelief.

Danny casually buttered his toast and pretended not to know what had caused her sudden flare of ire. "Can't say I've heard that comparison before, Mother. Now the devil, on the other hand? That's more my speed. But I guess 'oh my devil' doesn't roll off the tongue quite as easily."

She shook her head in disgust, looking for a moment like she wanted to reach across the table and snatch the small hoop from his ear right then and there. "What were you thinking?" she bit out with a disgusted glower, "It's bad enough that you refuse to cut your hair. Now this."

"What's wrong with my hair? It keeps me warm."

His mother had been less than amused by his flippancy. She pursed her heavily glossed, cosmetically enhanced lips. "You look like a delinquent, Danny."

"Mother, have you forgotten where I was two days ago?" he reminded her dryly, "I _am_ a delinquent. Get used to it."

He knew what she was really worried about. She didn't want him to make a bad impression, to "get off on the wrong foot," so to speak when they returned home, back to Green Grove, New York, back to the place where his life had changed irrevocably. Danny's lips quirked in a humorless smirk. Only his mother would believe that a clean cut, presentable appearance could help the residents of Green Grove forget that he had spent the last five years of his life locked up in the Huntington Juvenile Correction Facility for murdering his aunt. Then again, his mother had always possessed a streak of pure delusion that would almost be impressive if it weren't so embarrassingly pathetic. In Karen Desai's mind, if he smiled enough and was charming enough and wished hard enough then his past could be forgotten in a glittering shower of pixie dust.

So, that was the gist of it, the thing that had him shut away in the bathroom rather than perusing the gas station snack aisle. He was going back...back to the place where his life had begun and, symbolically, to where it had _ended_ as well. And though he was finally free from his five year incarceration, Danny realized that he remained imprisoned by his past and the difficult choices he'd made as an eleven year old boy. That, he suspected, was something from which he'd never be free. The realization saddened him but also filled him with a chilling sort of resolve. After all, by this point, he had nothing left to lose.

His good name had been forever ruined. His future was shot to hell. His father was dead. And his friends were long gone. The one person he had left to support was his lush of a mother and they had never been especially close so even that was tantamount to being on his own. One of his buddies in juvie had always said to him, "It's on you, man. Its' all on you. You put yourself in here. You gotta get yourself out." Danny supposed the same thing could be said for mental and emotional prisons. He didn't have to be there if he didn't want to be.

With that in mind, he took one last look at his reflection and squared his shoulders. From that moment onward, he decided, he was going to live life on his own terms. Screw Green Grove. Screw his mother. And screw the past. He was going to look out for himself for a change and damn the rest.

Damn them all.


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

His jeans felt way too big.

That was Danny Desai's most pervading thought as his mother drove past the cheery "Welcome to Green Grove" signage that signaled their official crossing over the border into Hell. Danny wasn't about to do something as dramatic as throwing open the car door and flinging himself from the vehicle, but...the thought did briefly cross his mind. He needed to focus on something, _anything_ to distract himself from the circus of reporters he knew would be waiting for him once his mother pulled into their driveway. After all, a child killer returning to the scene of his heinous crime was bound to make the local news, maybe even national.

That wasn't a subject Danny wanted to consider too deeply at the moment, so he focused on the pants. In Karen's Desai's defense, she hadn't purchased clothing for him since he was eleven years and a lot had changed about him since then. He was taller, of course, but he'd also lost much of the baby fat from his childhood and was now quite slender in build. Given that, Danny hadn't really expected for her to get the sizes right, particularly when the only article of clothing he'd actually possessed for the last five years had been a hideous, oversized, tan colored prison jumpsuit with a non-descript white t-shirt. She really didn't have much to go on as far as appropriate sizes went.

Prison life didn't exactly revolve around style or even comfort so that jumpsuit certainly couldn't serve as a gauge for what he was wearing these days. Consequently, most of the clothing his mother had purchased for him prior to his release was either too small or too big. But, at least, it wasn't standard prison issue any longer. _Anything_ was better than that.

However, dressed in dark, baggy clothing, an equally dark hoodie that virtually swallowed him and with a black beanie pulled down low over his eyes, Danny seriously doubted that he presented the "wholesome" look for which his mother had been striving. Not that he particularly bought into her "If you dress nicely and act nicely then people will like you" theory but he also wasn't trying to draw more undue attention to himself. For all his notoriety and cocky bravado, the one thing Danny Desai truly wanted was to keep a low profile. His plan was simple. He was going to get his grades, get his diploma and then get the hell out of Green Grove, New York and never look back.

Unfortunately, he knew the media wasn't about to let that happen, at least not smoothly. They would probably hound him at every opportunity until the day he finally left town. He seriously doubted that the sleepy province of Green Grove got much action in the way of news and so, by process of elimination, Danny recognized that _he_ was it. After all, what could be a more titillating story than a hardened, dangerous criminal with a sordid past for menacing the quiet, suburban community of Green Grove returning to menace once again? With his current look, he'd be giving to papers exactly what they wanted in their headlines: "Danny Desai: Bad Boy and Killer, Still Bad," news at eleven.

His expression becoming positively sullen at that depressing thought, Danny watched through the passenger side window as familiar neighborhoods began to whiz past with alarming speed. He didn't know why his mother was in such a god-awful hurry but he really wished she would slow down a little bit. She seemed totally oblivious to the fact that she was virtually _racing_ him towards his doom. For some inexplicable reason, Karen Desai had convinced herself that she and Danny could have a fresh start with his release. She was eager to start this brand new life that she had envisioned for the both of them but Danny, on the other hand, lacked her excitement to marked degree. He wanted to return to their old life and _that house_ just about as much as he wanted a hole in the head. In fact, the hole would have been preferable. He told his mother as much.

"Don't say things like that!" Karen admonished him, "It's morbid."

"You mean more morbid than returning to the scene of a murder?" he balked, "Give me a break, Mother! You want me to _live_ in a house where I killed a woman! Exactly how out of touch with reality are you?"

"You grew up in that house!"

"I also became a cold-blooded murderer in that house! Such warm, fond memories. Hip, hip, hoorah."

"Stop it. That was five years ago and we've put it behind us. You've paid your debt to society."

Danny nibbled on his thumbnail, not at all convinced. "Do you think that's how the people of Green Grove will see it?"

A flicker of uncertainty darkened her pretty features before she quickly masked it. "They'll get over it...with time."

"Yeah...whatever." He slumped down in his seat and bit his lip to keep from saying what he really wanted to say. "Could you at least try to keep it under 50 mph? Why are you in such a hurry? This is a residential zone, you know? I'd hate to have to go back to juvie just because you plowed over some poor, unsuspecting idiot with the car."

"I've been driving for longer than you've been alive, Danny," Karen replied tartly, "I think I have things under control. Besides...the sooner we get there, the sooner we get it over with."

Once again, Danny tightened his jaw against the sardonic retort that sprang to his lips. There was no point in arguing with her. When Karen Desai fixed her mind upon something then it was going to happen, come Hell or high water. She was used to getting her way. With her perfectly poised manner, pretty blond features and crystal blue eyes, she remained every inch the high society queen that she had always been...albeit one who had sadly fallen from grace recent years.

However, she was so determined to reclaim her throne that she honestly believed that the only thing standing between her and the "new life" she had planned was the sea of reporters that awaited them. Danny knew better. He knew very well that it was only the beginning. Although he didn't want to think about what was waiting for him, with his mother barreling down the road like her foot was made of cement, he inevitably began to obsess over all the possible worst case scenarios.

In addition to swarming reporters, Danny was certain there would also be a horde of angry neighbors in attendance as well, no doubt to protest having their pristine neighborhood sullied by a convicted killer. He imagined an unruly mob cordoned off behind bands of twisted, yellow, police tape, brandishing picket signs and shaking fists, yelling things like, _"Go back to juvie, Killer!"_ and _"Monster!"_ and _"You're not wanted here, Psycho!"_ Maybe he'd watched too much _Law and Order_ while he'd been locked up and it was possible he was being just a bit melodramatic but he doubted it. Those fears were the ones fixed most deeply in his heart right then. Plus, it wasn't a far cry from what he had experienced shortly _before_ he went away to Huntington after the news had hit over what he had done to Tara.

But Danny's absolute worst fear wasn't the possibility of reporters or a crowd of indignant neighbors brimming with hatred for him. _That_ he could handle. _That_ he expected. His worst fear was that _they_ would be there among the throng too...despising him with just as much virulence as everyone else. Danny could withstand rejection and hostility from everyone else, but not from the only two people, besides his father, who had meant the most to him... _Lacey Porter and Jo Marie Masterson_.

They had been his best friends while growing up in Green Grove. It had mattered very little that to him that they were girls because, somehow, the two of them managed to get him better than anyone in his life ever had. In fact, their gender hadn't ever been something he'd even considered before. From Danny's perspective, they were his family and their friendship had been meant to be.

Due to an established friendship between their parents, Danny had known Jo Marie, or "Jo," as she was affectionately called, since the cradle while Lacey would come into his life only a short time before his fourth birthday. He remembered that day vividly. He and Jo had been playing their usual games in the sandbox on the playground and Lacey had approached to tell them everything they were doing wrong and how they could do it better. Danny had liked her immediately. Once their duo became a trio then there was no stopping them. Up until he went away to Huntington, the three of them had been practically joined at the hips for most of their lives.

Jo had been the proverbial tomboy. She climbed trees. She hunted for frogs. She helped him torment unsuspecting girls on the playground with a plethora of insects. She made mud pies with him and helped him bake them in the sun. She had been his wingman and his quintessential partner in crime, the sibling he'd never had but always wanted. Lacey, however, had been something else to him entirely.

Even at a young age, Lacey Deanna Porter was a very old soul. She was, more often than not, the voice of reason, the protector and the nurturer of their little group. While he and Jo proved to be impulsive and reckless with their actions, Lacey was the thinker. On more than one occasion she had saved their butts from certain punishment because she was able, not only to devise mischievous schemes with the best of them but also to have a failsafe in place just in case things didn't work out. That was Lacey, Danny recalled with an inward smile. She always had a plan B...and a C...and a D if need be.

In a strange way, Lacey provided him with the stability that he couldn't find at home. With his father perpetually away on business, his mother perpetually drunk and his aunt perpetually hateful, Lacey Porter often proved to be Danny's safe haven from the constant tension and one of his closest confidantes. He also knew that no matter what befell him or what trouble he encountered, Lacey Porter would be the one to pull him out of it. Jo had been his kindred spirit but Lacey had been his rock, his anchor. Once upon a time...she had been his _everything_. All of that changed after Tara, however, and now there was no going back.

He hadn't thought of either of them in quite a few years now and that had been a deliberate choice on Danny's part. Memories of them and the time they had shared together as children were painful for him, especially the good memories because they only made the time he spent in lock up seem insufferably longer. Thinking about them and not being able to be with them was somehow harder than not thinking of them at all. Inevitably then, Danny chose the lesser of two evils. However, now that he was returning to Green Grove, they had once again crept their way into his mind and now they were practically all he thought about.

In his early months in juvie, both girls had written to him with surprising frequency. He had been staggered that their parents had even allowed them to write to him at all. Once the news broke over what he had done, contact between the three of them had been extremely limited. After he was sentenced, it had become nonexistent so when the letters began to arrive at Huntington Danny had been stunned. Unfortunately, shame, guilt and post traumatic stress had prevented Danny from opening a single one of their letters for almost six months. He was too embroiled with wrestling his own demons to make it okay for anyone else. And, by the time he finally did find the emotional strength to read them, he absolutely knew he wasn't going to write back.

Jo's letters had been mostly laced with confusion and anguish. It was clear that she felt betrayed by him. She would theorize constantly on whether she had ever really known him at all and if he had been manipulating her from the very start. Lacey's letters, on the other hand, had always demanded answers. She hadn't wanted to condemn him at all. She hadn't accused him. She had simply wanted to understand. She had wanted to help. Somehow her lack of censure was a thousand times worse than Jo's understandable disappointment in him. Danny hadn't known how to respond to such an unreserved offer of friendship and support. How could he possibly help Lacey to understand when he didn't understand himself?

After months and months of having their correspondence go unanswered eventually the letters gradually stopped coming altogether. Years of silence followed. The last time he had seen or spoken to either one of them in person had been that fateful day when he had walked out to the swing set with Jo's jump rope hanging from his numb fingers...when he brokenly confessed to them that he had strangled his Aunt Tara from behind as she sat on the sofa watching television. Jo had immediately accused him of joking but Lacey had insisted on proof. He'd made no move to stop them when they ran for the house. Danny could still hear their horrified screams clearly echoing in his ears, even after five years.

It was little wonder then that he did everything in his power to put them both out of his mind. Any reminders of them only increased the persistent shame and self-loathing that he felt inside. He mostly did a good job with shutting down that part of himself too, except on those rare occasions where the past became unavoidable. He'd had one such moment about a year ago, when he accidentally caught a glimpse of Lacey Porter's picture in the local newspaper from some scholastic achievement or another that had received national coverage. He had taken one look at that charming dimple in her cheek and had known her instantly, even before he read the name captioned beneath the picture. She had been just as beautiful as he remembered.

At seeing her smiling face again, Danny allowed himself, for a fleeting second, to imagine a future where he and Lacey could have grown up together, where he could have been all the things to her that he had wanted to be...but then he squelched it. As happy as the musing made him, it caused his heart to ache just as much because he knew that he would _never_ have that future with her. His choices had made that impossible. So, Danny Desai did the only thing he could do...he deliberately put Lacey Porter out of his mind and didn't think of her again until today. And, unfortunately, now that she and Jo were in his head again, he couldn't blast them out with a stick of dynamite.

But maybe it wouldn't be as bad as he was expecting it to be. It might be nice to see them again, maybe it could even be something resembling normalcy. They could very well embrace him with open arms. It was unlikely, but it was _possible_. Then again, there was also every chance they would spit on him and order him to stay out of their lives forever. After all, they had every reason in the world to hate him. Even if they _could_ forgive him for Tara, the definitive way he had cut them off emotionally following his trial and sentencing was likely a deal breaker. In the end, he really didn't know how Lacey and Jo would react to him. All he knew was that he hoped they wouldn't reject him. He _needed_ them not to reject him...even if that was what he deserved.

In the meantime, Danny recognized that worrying about it was a futile endeavor. Consequently, he tried to keep his thoughts focused on the things he could control, which pretty much ruled out anything pertaining to Lacey, Jo _and_ his Aunt Tara. His most immediate challenge would be confronting the throng of people currently camped out on his front lawn.

As his mother turned down their street, Danny gradually straightened in his seat as took in the overwhelming scene with a stunned breath. People lined the street with picket signs and cameras, some were even reclined in lawn chairs, unabashed spectators. It was far worse than he had even imagined. His mother didn't even bother admonishing him when he bit out a coarse expletive under his breath. Somehow, he knew that she wholly echoed his sentiments right then.

They hadn't even approached the driveway completely before the cameras began flashing in rapid fire succession. "Oh my God..." Karen groaned in consternation, "I wasn't expecting it to be this bad."

Danny appraised her with a sardonic, sideways glance. "Still think a pretty smile and a decent haircut is going to make it all better, Mother?"

Karen Desai shot him a quelling look before she removed one hand from the steering wheel and began digging around in the confines of her purse. Once she had found what she was looking for she passed a single house key to Danny. "This is yours. When we get out of the car, don't respond to their questions, okay," she instructed him, "Just keep your head down and go straight for the house."

He darted a surreptitious glance at the crowds of people that surrounded the car on all sides, almost making it impossible for them to even pull into their driveway, let alone exit the car without any real incident. In that respect, his mother's plan seemed terribly short-sighted. Danny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like that's gonna happen..."

"Danny, can you not be a smart ass for once and just do what I ask?" Karen snapped impatiently.

It wasn't the first time she'd yelled at him but it was the first time he could truly detect the trembling fear in her tone. Right then, Karen Desai wasn't concerned that he would make a bad impression and further besmirch her reputation. She was scared that he might be hurt. She was concerned for _him_. The realization that she actually cared managed to subdue Danny more than her irritation. He sighed and took the key from her hand. "Okay. What do you want me to do?"

Several minutes later, his mother stopped the car and leapt from the vehicle like an enraged valkyrie. The hope was that she would serve as enough distraction to allow Danny to slip from the car unnoticed. While she threatened to sue everyone present for trespassing with a slew of lawyers she did not have, Danny tried to creep from the car as surreptitiously as he could. It was a futile effort on his part. The instant he opened the door and exited the vehicle, virtual chaos exploded around him.

Cameras were snapping. Flashes were blinding. Reporters were yelling. The neighbors were yelling. _His mom_ was yelling. Contorted faces bloated with fury pressed him from all sides. But all of that seemed to take place on the periphery of Danny's consciousness. His thoughts were suddenly caught in a whirring vacuum. He stood for a moment, transfixed by the looming house before him and filled with dread over the prospect of entering it.

Once, that house had contained the few happy memories he possessed...precious time with his father, hide and seek with Lacey and Jo, the altogether rare occasions when his mother had been sober enough to actually mother him. But those meager recollections were not nearly potent enough to blot out his most prominent memory in that house. Danny felt as if he had been transported right back to that moment and he suddenly felt inundated with the very same paralyzing fear he'd felt the day it happened.

He didn't want to remember, didn't want to be bombarded with those images again...of his aunt Tara lying so still on the living room floor, her vacant, dead stare fixed on nothing. He was eleven years old again, staring down at her twisted, lifeless body lying on the carpet and feeling more terrified, more lost than he had ever been in his entire life. He wanted to run and hide but his feet felt like they were glued in place. Danny could feel himself becoming undone, losing control and he _hated_ the feeling. That same heavy weight that had settled in his chest then took up residence now.

His breath escaped him in harsh, ragged pants. His palms grew clammy. A fine sheen of cold sweat broke out over his entire body. His belly churned with a sudden, nauseating sense of panic and doom. For a second, he was quite certain he would vomit right there on the walkway. Danny might have stood rooted in that spot on the front sidewalk for an eternity if his mother's strident commands didn't finally manage to penetrate the fog in his brain.

"Danny, go! What are you doing? _Go!_ Get in the house right now!"

The edict propelled him into motion. He wasn't even aware he was moving until he ducked into the foyer and closed the door behind him. The last thing he heard before scooting beyond the safety of front door was his mother ordering everyone off of her property and threatening them with the authorities if they didn't comply. And then, a few minutes later, she was inside as well. She locked the front door behind her with a series of definitive clicks and leaned her forehead against the ornate facade with a tired sigh, effectively blotting out the noise and pandemonium blaring on her front lawn.

Once she had composed herself, Karen straightened and, when she did, she at last caught a glimpse of her son's traumatized expression. His skin appeared almost gray in color and he was visibly trembling. He stood staring, seemingly transfixed, at the exact spot where Tara Desai's body had been found all those years ago. Karen didn't have to guess that he was trapped in the loop of that horrifying day right then. In that instant he appeared nothing less than lost and devastated and, for Karen, it was the first inkling she had ever gotten concerning his feelings over what he had done.

She regarded him with a softened look, her heart aching for him and his lost childhood. It was a rare show of vulnerability for her typically facetious son. Usually he maintained a stoic, almost dismissive air about himself. To her extreme frustration, he treated most situations as a joke or, at least, as if they were of little consequence. Sarcasm was his go to and, when that didn't work, he simply shut down altogether. He certainly had an impressive poker face. But not right then. Right then, he reminded Karen so much of the little boy he had once been that she yearned to take him in her arms and hold him.

Knowing very well he would likely reject such an affectionate gesture, Karen mollified herself by reaching forward to place a comforting hand on his shoulder instead. "Are you okay, sweetheart?"

And, like that, the spell was broken. To Karen's eternal regret, Danny rebuilt his emotional wall and resumed his impassive demeanor. He shook off her touch, his features becoming inscrutable once more. "I'm fine. It's not like I didn't expect it."

"That was too much. They were more than a little aggressive. Anyone would have been shaken up by that display."

"I'm not shaken up. It's cool."

Karen refused to be dissuaded by his indifferent tone. She had seen the look on his face before. She knew he was more affected than he let on. "You're a novelty, Danny. That's all this is. You give the small minded gossips of this town something to talk about. Once the shock wears off everyone will go back to their lives and then we can finally live _ours_ in peace."

"Whatever you say, Mother," Danny sighed without any real conviction, "Now, if you don't mind, I think I'm gonna go upstairs and crash. It's been a long day and I'm wiped."

His mother's smooth forehead knit with a disappointed frown. "But we just got back. Can't you stay down here for a little while longer?" she cajoled, "You haven't even had dinner. We could order in. Pizza, Chinese...whatever you want. I thought that you and I could talk a bit and catch up."

"We've been talking for three days straight. I'm all out of conversation."

"That wasn't talking, Danny. That was you _grunting_ one word responses at me for the entire trip. I thought we might try our hand at some genuine conversation this time."

Danny snorted. "Since when have we _ever_ had 'genuine conversation?'"

"There's a first time for everything," Karen murmured, "We haven't really talked about your father...and how you feel about...about his death."

He shrugged and turned away from her in an attempt to conceal the unbidden emotion that swelled in his chest with the mention of his father. "What's to talk about? He's dead. I'm not."

"Don't do that," his mother implored softly, "Don't pretend you don't feel anything."

"Mother, give it a rest! I hadn't seen the man since I was thirteen years old, okay!" Danny bit out, "I became an afterthought to him a long time ago! I'm not going to cry over him now! Except for the occasional birthday card here and there, the man had become a stranger to me!"

"I know that," Karen acknowledged patiently, "and I know that must have hurt you so much, sweetheart. I just...I thought you might want to talk about those feelings."

"I don't."

He started to climb the stairs for his room when his mother's voice sounded from behind him, causing him to pause mid-step. "Maybe...maybe it would be a good idea if you saw someone. I know a man who comes highly recommended," Karen considered. Danny slowly pivoted to face her with an expression that was clearly asked, "Are you freaking kidding me?" Karen was undeterred by his lack of enthusiasm. "It might help, you know...to speak to a professional, someone who has been trained to help you get in touch with your emotions."

Growing progressively more irritated with her probing, Danny pinned his mother with a glittering stare. "You want me to see a _shrink_? Is that what you're saying?"

"It can't hurt. There's no shame in therapy, Danny."

"Yeah, because _yours_ worked so well."

"Maybe you could even talk about Tara," Karen persevered doggedly.

Danny's countenance became positively stony with the proposal. His nostrils flared and, for one terrifying second, Karen feared he might leap down the steps and strangle her to death too. Danny must have detected that fear lurking in the blue depths of her eyes because he made a concerted effort to draw himself back and keep his temper in check. When he spoke again, however, his words had not lost any of their bite. "Listen to me, Mother, because I am only going to say this _one_ time. I am _never_ talking about Tara. Not to a shrink. Not to you! Not to _anyone_!"

"I just want to understand the reason, Danny! Why did you do it? I didn't have the courage to ask you before but I'm asking you now. Was she...was she hurting you...was she threatening you...touching you inappropriately?"

"She wasn't molesting me, if that's what you're getting at," Danny snorted, caught somewhere between exasperation and embarrassment over her prying, "God, Mother! How about we drop this conversation altogether before you _really_ make a fool out of yourself?"

There had been a time in his life when he would have gladly welcomed his mother's desire to know the truth about that day. When he had been eleven, he used to silently beg her with his eyes to ask him for the truth. He had _needed_ her to ask him because, back then, he couldn't make himself volunteer the words. They had been locked away in his heart, secured there by sheer terror. He had craved a protector. He had needed his mother...more than he ever had in his entire life. But she had been too preoccupied with her champagnes and her wines and the loss of her reputation and social status to give much heed to her emotionally wrecked eleven year old son.

Even at twelve and thirteen, Danny had continued to hold out the desperate hope that she would give him some inkling that she cared, that she had some desire to know the full story about that terrible day. But she had never once asked him. Not a single time in five, long years...until today. Yet now, at sixteen years old, Danny was far too jaded and embittered to accept her feeble attempts at mothering him. In the end, confiding in her would change very little. He would have still served a five year sentence for murder. Tara would still be dead...and so would his father. Her concern for him had come too little, too late. Danny made that bluntly clear to her as well.

Discouraged but not dissuaded entirely, Karen attempted to soften her son's heart towards her once more. "I'm trying here. I know I've made mistakes with you but, I _am_ trying, Daniel. Can't you make a little effort as well?"

"You want me to make an effort with you?" he half scoffed, half cried, "Are you freaking kidding me right now? Don't act like what I feel or what I want matters to you in the least! If that were true, then we wouldn't be here! _That's_ on you!"

"This is where you were born! This is your home!"

"Spare me that sentimental crap! I'm not buying it! This is about you saving face! You want to thumb your nose at this community and you want to use me to do it!"

It wasn't anything that he hadn't subtly implied before but, this was the first time he had accused her outright. The revulsion that twisted his handsome features right then was agonizing to witness. It was painfully clear how much contempt he held for her. Karen stumbled back a step with a gasp of genuine hurt. "Is that really what you think of me?"

"We could have gone anywhere, Mom," he uttered thickly, "We could have started over _anywhere_ but, you chose this place. _You_ brought me back to this town. And I'm supposed to go to school here now? I'm supposed to make a life here? You could, at least, home-school me or hire a tutor or something! Why are you going to make me go through this?" His fury buckled under the weight of his crushing anguish and confusion. "Are you trying to punish me? Do you hate me _that_ much?"

"No, sweetheart. _No_. I know you don't believe this but, I love you, Danny...more than anything."

"Then why?"

"You need the socialization. I honestly believe this is the best thing for you. I think it's a good idea for you to attend a _normal_ school with _normal_ kids and see what it's like to lead a _normal_ life!"

"I did go to school with normal kids!"

"I meant kids who aren't thieves, drug addicts and killers, Danny," Karen bit out shortly.

Danny appraised her with a chilling stare. "I'm a killer too, Mother...or did you forget?"

"No," she replied in a shaky whisper, "I haven't forgotten."

"And neither has Green Grove. You saw what happened out there. They'll never forget what I've done or forgive me for it. I'll never have a life here!"

"That's not true."

"Just because you don't want to face reality that doesn't make it any less true!" he retorted, "You could have chosen anywhere to live in the entire United States but you had to choose this godforsaken town! Why?"

"I didn't have a choice in the matter!" Karen cried sharply, "We couldn't go anywhere else, Danny. We don't have the resources. We're broke."

While nothing else had managed to penetrate the thick wall of anger shrouding Danny's heart, that statement left him momentarily speechless. He flailed for several seconds in search of a response. Finally, he sputtered, "Wh-What? What are you talking about? What do you mean we're broke?"

"Your father..." she began with a great deal of reluctance, "He wasn't what you would call an 'honest businessman' and some of those 'business decisions' he made have come under the scrutiny of the IRS. At the moment, most of our assets have been frozen by the government. We still have the house and a little money in savings that will allow us to live comfortably for now but, that is it."

"Why don't you just sell house then?" Danny argued grimly.

"I tried that already. No one wants to purchase the house where Tara Desai was murdered."

Danny winced, shame pouring through him like hot acid. "How bad is it? What exactly was Dad into?"

"Money laundering, racketeering...just to name a few things..."

In stunned disbelief, Danny slowly folded himself down onto the steps as he struggled to process everything his mother had just told him. He couldn't really feel disillusionment over the revelation. He harbored far too much disappointment in Vikram Desai to even be surprised anymore. "You're telling me that Dad was a criminal?"

"I...I don't like that word."

"But that's what he was, right? Dad was a criminal. Your husband was a thug and your son is a murderer. Wow, you really hit the jackpot, Mom."

"Stop doing that! I won't let you talk about yourself that way. What happened to Tara was something you did a long time ago. It's not who you are, Danny."

Rather than arguing that point with her, he queried hoarsely, "Have you always known...about what kind of man Dad was?" When she confirmed his question with a bobbing nod, he asked in a tone vibrating with disappointment, "And you married him? You had a kid with him? Why didn't you tell me?"

"It's not black and white. Your father had many sides. He was a very complicated man, Danny. He didn't grow up in a traditional family and sometimes his values could be somewhat...skewed. He wasn't perfect but he loved you...so very much. You were the best thing he ever did."

Danny's response to that was a derisive grunt. "Yeah...I can tell. His subsequent abandonment really speaks to the overwhelming affection he had for me."

Karen wasn't discouraged by his mocking tone. By now, she was beginning to learn Danny's pattern. The more hurt he was about something, the more sarcastic he became. Keenly aware that he must be reeling emotionally right then, she sat down beside him and reached over to take hold of his hand. Her heart jumped a little when he didn't immediately snatch it back. Emboldened by his pliancy, she dared to brush away the locks of hair that fell across his forehead.

"We're going to be okay, sweetheart. I promise you. We're going to get through this together."

"You're wrong, Mother," he mumbled in dejection, "I'm never going to be 'okay' again."


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

He imagined this was what living in a fishbowl must feel like.

The instant Danny Desai stepped through the doors of Green Grove High School everything and everyone within a twenty foot radius came to an abrupt standstill. The halls, which had been rich with the deafening cacophony of simultaneous conversation gradually descended into an eerie silence. Dozens of eyes immediately darted in his direction, expressing varied emotions veering from righteous indignation to outright fear. While Danny repressed the natural impulse to squirm, Karen Desai couldn't quite control her fidgeting response. With a nervous tremor, she blindly groped for Danny's hand and gave his fingers a reassuring squeeze. He allowed the contact for briefly before pulling away and stuffing both hands into his pockets.

Karen had been hovering over him ever since she had dropped the bombshell about his father the night before. He supposed she was waiting for him to break down into a fit of uncontrollable weeping but, if that was the case, she was going to have a long wait. Danny didn't want to cry. He didn't really want to grieve either. What he wanted was answers. He needed to know if his father's sordid past was the reason Vikram Desai had become so scarce with his visits to Huntington during his last three years of imprisonment. Danny would much rather believe his father had stopped coming to see him due to necessity rather than neglect. In the end, he supposed, Vikram's reasons didn't much matter. The results were still the same.

Presently, however, Danny shoved those thoughts out of his mind. He had more immediate problems facing him, namely navigating his way to Principal Tang's office without causing too much of a scene. Rather than making some acerbic comment to cover his discomfiture, Danny exhaled a deep sigh and began the long, uncomfortable trek down the corridor. As he and his mother started forward, the loitering student body that cluttered their path split like the waters of the Red Sea, giving him the wide berth when he passed. It wasn't the first time in his life that he had been treated like a pariah and yet experience didn't lessen the sting of being rebuffed at all. Only when his back was to them completely did activity and conversation resume and, when it did, Danny had little doubt that _he_ was at the center of it all.

Though he tried not to appear outwardly concerned by the scrutiny, the truth was that Danny hated every second of the attention he received. In spite of his infamy and disturbing past, Danny Desai harbored the same desires as any other teenager...to lead a normal life and to be liked and accepted by his peers. There was a certain irony in the knowledge that he had felt more at home among a crew of misfits and thugs who had, at one time or another, beaten him ruthlessly during his early months at Huntington than he did among the very kids with whom he'd actually attended elementary school and various country club functions.

"Remember what I told you before," his mother muttered in aside.

"Yes, I know. I'm a novelty and this will all be forgotten in a week. I've got it, Mother. Save yourself the peptalk."

Karen expelled a long-suffering groan. "Danny, please, can we not do this today?"

His facade of indifference slipped a notch with her beleaguered tone, causing his irritation with her to be plainly evident on his face. "You wanted this, remember!" he hissed sharply, "You don't get to pity me now!"

Given the tense circumstances, it would have been easy to duck his head and avoid eye contact altogether, especially when he knew that he was the topic of every single conversation taking place right then. But Danny did not lower his head and he did not look away. Convicted murderer or not, he had an incredible amount of pride. He had served his time. He had paid his debt to society and made amends hat had been dictated by law and his own conscience. And he was entitled to his freedom now. He deserved the same education that was being offered to his classmates.

With that in mind, he met their darting glances squarely with a frosty stare of his own, boldly making eye contact with any who dared to look in his direction. Not surprisingly, the vast majority paled and looked away almost the instant they met his eyes, as if they feared he might fancy them as his next victim. Danny couldn't help but smirk a bit at their cowardice and intolerance. If they wanted to believe he was a dangerous animal capable of harming him who was he to disabuse them of the notion? Danny had to admit that he delighted in unnerving them...just a little.

When he and his mother neared the end of the hallway towards the principal's office, Danny found himself reflexively scanning the faces scattered before him for some glimpse of Jo and Lacey. He didn't know what he would say to them if he saw them. He wasn't even certain that he would approach them if he had the opportunity. Still, it was oddly comforting to know that they were in the same building. Somehow, he didn't feel as alone.

However, what filled Danny Desai with a bizarre sense of peace had Lacey Porter closeted away in the girl's bathroom melting down into a full-fledged panic attack. Currently, she gripped the edges on the stained porcelain sink and was attempting to get her short, rapid breaths under control in order to resume some facade of calm. She didn't know why she was falling apart. For more than a week, she had been mentally preparing herself for the day when Danny Desai enrolled in Green Grove High School and effectively strolled back into her life after five, torturous years of absence. Unfortunately, contemplating his presence in the abstract and dealing with it in reality were two very different things.

She hadn't seen him yet. In fact, she had taken great pains to avoid him. Despite her efforts, she was acutely cognizant of the whispers about him spreading throughout the school like wildfire. As soon as word reached her that the notorious aunt killer, her former best friend, had arrived on campus, Lacey had ducked into the nearest bathroom to collect herself. But all the breathing techniques in the world couldn't seem to calm her frayed nerves.

With trembling fingers, she switched on the tap and cupped her hands beneath the sputtering flow. After splashing her face several times with the cool water, Lacey lifted her gaze to regard her harried reflection in the mirror, vaguely wondering how so much had spiraled out of control so fast and in such a short period of time. Not much had changed since the last time she'd checked her image shortly before leaving for school. She had the same dark hair, same brown eyes and same brown skin adorning a 5 foot 8 inch, slender frame that she had that morning. Yet, the person staring back at her felt like a stranger. She was a far cry from the cool, sophisticated society girl who had arrived at school just thirty minutes prior.

No one would have ever imagined that their head cheerleader, planning committee captain and general all around overachiever Lacey Porter could be reduced to a quivering, cowering mess when faced with the prospect of seeing the only person who had ever truly crushed her heart. She was an absolute wreck. Her usual cool veneer had melted away like new frost under the heat of the rising sun. Danny Desai had managed to shake her greatest defense mechanism and she hadn't even come face to face with him yet. If he had the power to leave her so dazed sight unseen, Lacey dreaded what would happen when they came face to face.

She was still struggling to regain some semblance of control over her rioting emotions when Jo Masterson hastily scrambled inside and shut the door behind her, evidently overcome by the same debilitating need to hide that had also compelled Lacey Porter. Dressed in an oversized camo jacket, khaki utility pants and what resembled weathered combat boots, the slim, but sturdy blonde didn't exactly paint the picture for the type of person who would duck and hide from anyone...yet, there was no mistaking that was _exactly_ what she was doing.

Before Lacey could make her presence known to the other girl, Jo started to slump back against the door with a billowing sigh of relief only to freeze in place when she caught sight of Lacey. Her former best friend was leaning over the bathroom sink, blinking at Jo with wide, frantic eyes. Jo slowly straightened.

"Hey..." she uttered gruffly.

"Hey..." Lacey returned with equal gruffness.

The shattered expression on Lacey's face right then was difficult to ignore. Jo's first and most instinctive inclination was to ask after her former friend, to commiserate in the mutual hell they were both enduring at present but her stubborn pride wouldn't allow it. After all, she and Lacey hadn't spoken a single word to each other in almost three years, when Lacey had decided that being popular and accepted was more important to her than being Jo's friend. The forceful reminder of Lacey's desertion caused Jo to harden her heart and conceal her mixed emotions behind a facade of indifference.

She quirked a questioning brow at Lacey. "Panic attack?" she inquired.

"If that's...what you call feeling...like there's an...an elephant sitting...on your chest...," Lacey explained between hitching gasps.

"Sounds about right. And, since I know you're not asthmatic, I'm willing to lay down money that you're definitely having a panic attack." Lacey said nothing to that. If anything she started to hyperventilate even more. "It helps if you inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth," Jo advised Lacey in a flat tone, "Purse your lips when you blow out the air. It helps to slow your breathing. At least, that's what my therapist always said to me whenever I used to spiral like that."

"Does it...really...help...?" Lacey asked in between attempts to do as Jo had instructed.

"It helped me to focus my mind on something other than my problems...so yeah, I guess it did."

Lacey expelled a shuddering breath. "Yeah...I could...use that...right now..."

"Well, um...good luck with that," Jo said, obviously with every intention of ducking from the bathroom in search of new hiding place. Lacey's desperate plea for her to stay stopped her in her tracks. Jo pivoted to face her again, her jaw tight with anger and resentment over being detained. "What? What do you want from me, Lacey?"

"You know what I want."

"Actually, I don't know! We haven't spoken to each other in quite a while, remember?"

"He's back, Jo. And you're the only person in the world who could possibly understand what I'm going through right now..." Lacey whispered, "...because I know you're going through it too."

It was the closest thing the two of them had shared to real conversation in quite some time. It was true that they had exchanged polite pleasantries at Vikram Desai's memorial service just five months earlier but that had been strictly superficial. The last time they had talked, _really_ talked it had degenerated into a bitter fight that had signaled the demise of their nine year friendship.

Following Danny's sentencing and subsequent incarceration, Lacey and Jo had lived their young lives under a bevy of scrutiny. At first, they had been pitied for their friendship with Danny Desai, painted as poor, unsuspecting dupes who had fallen victim to a conscienceless sociopath. The community at large was convinced that they had been manipulated and abused by a consummate liar. Later, when they continued to maintain his innocence despite Danny's own lack of initiative in defending himself, they were ultimately shunned and regarded with suspicion as well.

In the beginning, Jo and Lacey had stuck together through the backlash. They had been bonded by their mutual determination to prove Danny's innocence as well as the trauma they'd both endured due to his actions. But, as the days became weeks and the weeks turned into months and their numerous letters to Danny went unanswered, both girls gradually began to lose faith in him. Danny never made any attempts to explain to them why he had done what he had. He never made any overtures to deny killing Tara at all. After some time, Jo and Lacey both began to draw the conclusion that maybe Danny didn't have any real remorse for what he'd done, maybe he actually was everything the media and law enforcement claimed him to be...maybe he _was_ a sociopath.

The possibility of that being true rocked the foundation of Lacey's entire world, but it absolutely devastated Jo. She didn't only lose faith in people in general as a result of Danny's betrayal but, she also lost faith in herself. While Lacey tried to find a positive outlet for her grief through volunteer work and scholastic achievements and every extracurricular activity she could imagine, Jo plunged into a severe depression, riddled with PTSD and plagued by anxiety and self-doubt. For the next two years, she spent most of her time in and out of mental facilities suffering from everything from violent outbursts to suicidal ideation.

For Lacey, losing Danny and scathing scrutiny that had resulted from his actions had been distressing enough, but watching Jo unravel into an angry shadow of who she'd once been and, all the while dealing with her own parents messy divorce, had proved to be too much of an emotional burden for Lacey. She had felt like she was drowning, being slowly consumed by the same despair and hopelessness that had already claimed her two best friends. Eventually, she reached a point where she had to make a choice. She could either succumb to the darkness or she could save herself and rebuild her life. It was her decision to do the latter that struck the killing blow to her already dying friendship with Jo Masterson. Jo had never forgiven her for the decision and, in some ways, Lacey hadn't forgiven herself either.

All of those past choices and regrets tumbled through Lacey's mind as she regarded Jo presently. With Danny's return to Green Grove, she once again felt like that naive eleven year old girl she had been, the one who had once believed she could fix any problem if she contemplated a solution long enough, the one who had insisted on having "proof" when Danny had made his startling confession to her and Jo while they sat on the swings. That image of Tara Desai's dead body was branded into her memory. She would never forget that day. She knew that Jo would never forget it either.

Quite honestly, that was Lacey's entire motivation in wanting Jo to stay. She felt vulnerable and insecure and incredibly lonely and the one thing she wanted more than anything in the world was to commiserate with the one person who could understand her feelings. She wanted to have her best friend back. In that instant, Lacey Porter would have gladly given up her popularity, her academic achievements and all the admiration of her peers if she could get back the closeness she and Jo had once shared. It was that desire that prompted her to look past Jo's reluctance and impatience and do something that she hadn't done in years...she asked Jo Marie Masterson how she was feeling.

Visibly taken aback by Lacey's unprecedented show of concern, Jo emitted a short, sardonic laugh. "What? Are you serious? You want to know how I feel?"

"Yeah actually, I do. It's crazy out there right now," Lacey murmured sincerely, "How are you holding up with everything?"

"How do you think I'm holding up, Lacey? I had nightmares all night. Every time I closed my eyes I saw Tara Desai's face and that dead stare she had. It was horrible."

"Me too." Their eyes met in a brief flickering of mutual understanding. "Have you seen him yet?"

"Nope. As soon as I heard he was coming, I ducked in here. I'm not ready."

Lacey's lips quirked in a humorless smile. "I guess we had the same idea then."

"It's like how we used to play hide and seek with him when we were kids," Jo recalled thickly, "Only...not so much. He used to be the person who understood me better than anyone. I never thought I'd be _afraid_ to face him, you know?"

"Yeah...me too."

"I caught a glimpse of the back of his head on the news last night. He looks taller."

"Yeah, he does. But it has been five years." The attempt at small talk dwindled quickly as Lacey decided to tackle the subject that was foremost on both of their minds. "Are you going to talk to him?"

"I don't know yet. Are you?"

Lacey grimaced at the suggestion. "He's a killer, Jo. What could we possibly have to say to one another?"

"Right. And I'm a head case. We both know what happens to people who don't fit into your perfect little boxes, don't we, Lacey?"

"That's not what happened with us and you know it. I just meant that it might be a good idea to keep our distance from him. That's all."

"Whatever. I don't want to talk about it." She hoisted her backpack more securely onto her shoulder, making yet another attempt to get out there and put the whole conversation with Lacey Porter out of her mind. "I'll see you around."

"Maybe that's the problem, Jo," Lacey threw out at her desperately, "We never really talked about it. Not what happened with Danny and not what happened with us. For what it's worth, I...I wasn't trying to bail on you. I just wanted to have a life."

Jo stiffened, keeping her back to Lacey when she bit out, "And now you have it."

"That's not what I meant."

Her lips thinned with repressed resentment, Jo threw down her backpack and whirled to face Lacey again, pushing her unruly blond curls back from her eyes with a huff of frustration. "You really want to do this now, Lacey? Right here in the middle of the girls' bathroom? _Today_ of all days?"

"Come on, Jo, can't we just...you know...band together to get through this? I know you've got to be as freaked out as I am. I never thought he would be back here. I figured he would go right out of juvie into the penitentiary or something."

"So what? Danny's back and you've suddenly had a 'coming to Jesus' moment? Are we supposed to hold hands and have a sing-a-long now? Wouldn't that be social suicide for you? What would your precious friends think?"

Lacey slumped forward in defeat, aggravation causing her to utter aloud the first words that sprang to her lips. "God, you're as self-righteous as ever, aren't you?"

"Good thing we're not friends anymore, huh?" Jo retorted, "You're not under any obligation to tolerate me now."

"It was never about _tolerating_ you, Jo. I just never agreed on your standards for friendship."

"Friends stick together, Lacey! Number one rule and you never got that!"

"It's a two way street! _I_ needed a friend back then too! My life was hell, but you were too busy falling apart to see that!"

"Well, now you have an entire entourage," Jo replied coldly, "What do you need me for?"

"You're right," Lacey agreed, finally pushed to her breaking point with Jo's persistent frostiness, "I don't need you." She bent over to gather up her scattered books and belongings, missing the pain that flashed across Jo's features as she did so. When she straightened, she raked the other girl with a curt glance before shouldering past her. "Take care of yourself, Jo."

She managed to clear the bathroom before her eyes began to well with tears. Horrified by the prospect of bursting into tears right there in the middle of the hallway, Lacey ducked her head down low and made a determined beeline towards her locker. She was so intent on getting there and plowing through the remainder of her wretched day that she didn't even realize she was on a collision course with the very person she had been seeking to avoid until she crashed right into him.

Her books and purse went flying as Danny automatically reached out to catch her by the forearms to keep her from falling to the ground. The instant their eyes collided, the beginning of Lacey's fumbled apology died on her lips. It had been five years since she had laid eyes on him and he had matured substantially in that time but not so much that Lacey Porter couldn't recognize Danny Desai at first sight. His eyes, especially, were a dead giveaway. There were times when Lacey felt she knew those liquid brown depths better than she knew her own body.

Immediately, she ripped away from him with a whimper that was half fearful, half repulsed. "Don't touch me!" she hissed at him.

Danny held up his hands in a submissive motion. "Lacey, it's okay," he quickly reassured her, "I was just trying to keep you from falling. That's it."

Truly, he was just as shaken up by the encounter as she was. He hadn't been prepared to have her cross his path at all. The last thing he had expected was for her to literally come barreling into him. Until that instant, Danny hadn't even made up his mind as to whether he would seek her out or even talk to her at all. Fate had effectively wrestled that indecision out of his hands. Now that he had come face to face with Lacey Porter again, there was absolutely no way he could walk away from her.

"You dropped all of your stuff," he observed inanely, "I can pick-,"

"-Stop it! I don't need your help, Danny!" she snapped, immediately dropping to her knees to gather up her fallen books and the strewn remnants of her purse. When he also stooped down to help her retrieve the items, she barked at him, snatching up her possessions and stuffing them back into her bag like someone possessed. "I got it, okay! Just back off!"

"Lacey...Lace, come on...please, can't you give me a chance here? I don't want it to be this way between us."

The soft, cajoling tone he used to say her name was enough to stun Lacey into complete immobility. Filled with dread, but compelled by some yet unnamed force, Lacey tentative lifted her uncertain gaze to his imploring one. A plethora of emotions pumped through her veins when she met his eyes again. Unbidden joy over his return, fear that he might very well be the monster he'd been portrayed to be, anger that he had abandoned their friendship and seemingly forgotten her existence for the past five years, confusion that she should care that he had forgotten at all...and finally, longing for all the things she had once imagined they could be to each other. She ran that full gambit of conflicting feelings and back again in a matter of seconds.

Overwhelmed, Lacey lowered her eyes, hoping to conceal the fresh onslaught of tears that started to blur her vision. "What do you want from me, Danny?" she asked him in a trembling tone.

"To talk." He ducked his head to get a better look at her, frustrated by the halo her long hair created around her face. He wanted to brush it back but he knew she was much too skittish to accept such an intimate gesture of affection from him. He had to start small. "I've missed you, Lacey. You have no idea how much I've missed you."

Holding his breath in anticipation, Danny slowly started to inch his fingers across the floor with the cautious intention of covering Lacey's hand with his own, when Jo's terse words sounded just above his head. "Back in school ten minutes and already causing a scene, huh, Desai? I'm impressed." Lacey immediately snapped to attention with Jo's approach, the fragile truce had been burgeoning between her and Danny effectively broken. Angry with herself for even considering it, Lacey finished gathering her books while Danny addressed Jo.

He bit back an ironic smile and tipped his head back to regard his former best friend. "Jo Marie Masterson," he said with a thread of obvious affection, "It's been a while. You look good."

"Wow...you act as if you've been away on vacation, Danny," she retorted, "and not locked up in juvie this whole time."

"I guess it all depends on your point of view."

Jo grunted in response as he and Lacey came to their feet. Gradually, the three of them became aware of the growing audience they were attracting with their impromptu reunion. For the moment, however, tense emotion allowed them to ignore the crowd.

"I see you and Lacey have already caught up," Jo remarked tartly. She pinned her former friend with an accusing glare. "So much for keeping your distance from him, huh?"

"He just mowed me down in the hallway, Jo," Lacey bit out as she cradled her books almost defensively, "It's not like you caught us baring our souls to each other!"

"Actually, _you_ mowed _me_ down," Danny teased, "But let's not quibble over details." When neither of them laughed at his lame attempt at levity, he immediately sobered and addressed them both in a more fervent tone. "Look, I know you guys probably have a lot of questions for me. I don't blame you both for being angry. I bailed on you both. I know that." He darted a self-conscious glance around them, acutely aware of the listening ears that flanked them on all sides. "Listen...I was thinking that maybe we could meet up at our old fort after school...maybe talk things out-,"

"-Have you completely lost it?" Lacey interrupted sharply, "You're crazy if you think I'd go anywhere with you ever again, Danny! Just...just stay away from me, okay. We're done!"

Disappointed and a little gutted by her harsh words, Danny watched Lacey walk away with a remorseful sigh, clamping down on his wild impulse to call her back. As much as it killed him to be faced with her rejection, Danny recognized that if he wanted her to forgive him, he'd have to give her space to process first. He imagined that he'd need to deal with Jo in the same delicate manner.

His suspicions were confirmed when he turned back again to face Jo once again. He could tell by her expression she was going rebuff him too, just as Lacey just had. "Jo, wait," he begged when she would have walked away from him, "Don't do this. You're not going to let me explain?"

"You had your chance to do that five years ago but you chose otherwise! Don't bother trying to backtrack now!" When he started to reach for her, meaning only to snag hold of her jacket to waylay her, Jo danced out of his reach with warning glare. "Touch me and I swear I'll scream bloody murder!"

Before he could even begin to reassure her that he wouldn't hurt her and never could, Principal Tang emerged from the growing crowd surrounding them. "Is there a problem here?"

Danny flicked him with an annoyed glance before looking to Jo again. "There is no problem. Jo and I were just talking."

"And now we're done," Jo retorted softly.

That was all the confirmation Principal Tang needed. He plucked Danny by the sleeve and began leading him down the hallway, back towards his office. "Mr. Desai, I think you and I should have a little discussion about boundaries..."

Jo watched Principal Tang lead Danny away, staunchly ignoring the tiny flare of guilt she felt over having inadvertently gotten him into more trouble. She knew that Danny hadn't had any real intention to hurt her before but the fear and confusion he provoked with his presence had prevented her from speaking up in his behalf. Her guilt over her lack of initiative only increased exponentially when she discovered that she and Danny shared their first period together and, thanks to his being detained by Principal Tang, he was forced to arrive late and, as a result, once again found himself at the center of unwanted attention.

For the duration of class there were whispers and constant jabs at him by their fellow classmates. The growing trend among the student body had them labeling him with the rather unimaginative nickname, "Socio." There was also "freak" and the more clever "Danny DePsycho," but Danny, for his part, seemed to take the name calling in stride. He mostly slouched down in his seat and surveyed his fellow classmates with speculative eyes, fiddled with his pencil and remained quietly observant for the majority of the period.

When he did speak, his answers were terse but reflected a keen intelligence. Danny Desai was no dummy. He was articulate, well read and extremely bright, a strange combination of traits for someone who had spent the formative years of their life in prison. It was a fact that obviously impressed their teacher as well, which was likely what compelled her to make the asinine suggestion that he introduce himself to the class...as if an introduction was even necessary. Still, Danny had complied.

Even then he had stood and declared without an ounce of shame, "I'm Danny Desai. I guess I'm the kid you guys call Socio. That's pretty funny actually. I think we're going to have a great year together," before resuming his seat with an unaffected smirk. He had seemed amazingly unaffected by the fear he'd evoked with that statement alone.

For Jo Marie Masterson's part, however, she didn't know how convinced she was by Danny's blasé, unaffected manner. She well understood how it felt to be treated as an outcast in school. That had been her life for the better part of five, painful years. It wasn't fun to have students whispering and pointing at her behind her back. It had been soul destroying to have the one, single friend she had reject her right along with the rest of her peers. It had sucked royally to be the butt of all their cruel jokes, to be made to feel worthless. If Danny was experiencing even a tenth of that, Jo couldn't help but ache for him.

In her own experience, she had become understandably withdrawn, affecting an outward show of indifference rather than revealing how much her classmates' unending spitefulness had devastated her. She couldn't help but wonder if Danny was dealing with similar feelings himself. Jo remembered the pure look of desolation on his face when Lacey had walked away from him that morning and she could very well imagine that he did. She didn't want to pity him, didn't want to sympathize with his plight at all...especially since he had brought it all on himself, yet she did.

She found herself discussing her mixed feelings about Danny Desai with her best friend, Rico Velazquez, over lunch as they both huddled in their usual corner of the school cafeteria and observed Danny eating alone while pretending not to be aware of him at all. Jo took a bite of her sandwich, chewing thoughtfully before she declared definitively, "I think it's a cover."

"Who cares if it's a cover?" Rico argued around a mouthful, "The guy's a killer. Have you seen his eyes? They're psychotic!"

"No, they're not! You didn't know Danny before, Rico. He's harmless."

"We _are_ talking about the same kid who went to prison for murdering his aunt, Jo!"

"Juvie," she corrected shortly, "He went to juvie. And you don't know what his aunt was like or how she treated him."

"So what? You think he was justified in what he did?" Rico cried dubiously.

"Of course not," Jo replied quickly, "I...I'm just saying that...it's complicated."

Rico stared at her as if she'd just sprouted a second head. "Oh my god..." he uttered, "Please tell me that you're not seriously thinking about giving him a chance!"

Jo ducked her head in chagrin, unable to deny the charge. "I know it sounds stupid."

"It _is_ stupid," Rico emphasized flatly, " _He's a killer._ Does this not mean anything to you? I can say it in Spanish if that will clarify the situation. _Él es un asesino!_ "

"Rico, you're not helping..."

"I'm not trying to! You sound like a crazy woman!"

"I know that! I know, okay! I just...I can't pretend like it doesn't matter to me that he's back," she admitted in a suffocated tone, "He was like a brother to me and... I've really missed him. I've missed him this whole time."

"What if he's not the same guy you remember? What if he's totally nuts?"

"And what if he's not? I feel like I owe it to myself to find out."

Jo never made an official decision to meet Danny out at their dilapidated fort in the woods but when the final bell rang at the conclusion of the school day, she absolutely knew that was where she was headed. However, her own natural caution and need for self-preservation had her begging Rico to go along with her. He was reluctant, of course, but Jo was surprised she didn't have to do much arm twisting to convince him. When he recognized that her mind couldn't be changed about it, he immediately agreed to accompany her, citing the wisdom in his company when he said, "If he actually shows up, and I seriously hope he won't, we'd never have any hope of recovering your body if you went out there alone."

His concern provoked simultaneous feelings of affection and laughing irritation in Jo. Rico Velazquez could be a bumbling, stumbling mess on a good day and, more often than not, he was way too overcautious for Jo's taste but, in spite of his spastic nervousness, his presence was an undeniable comfort to her. He had been her rock, confidante and steady study partner for the better part of two years. He was the only person in school not to be put off by her reputation or her surly demeanor. Jo didn't know what she would do without him.

"I'm really glad you're coming with me," she told him as they trudged their way through the woods, "I just thought you should know. You're a good friend, Rico."

"That's good that we're having these heartfelt confessions right now because I'm pretty sure we're going to be murdered and our corpses will be left to rot in the sun."

She bit back a stunned laugh at his blunt observation. "Never let it be said you're not the king of optimism, Rico."

"I do what I can."

The faltering humor between them was forgotten, however, when they finally arrived at Jo's childhood fort. It had become overrun with vines and foliage in the short time since she'd last been there but it was hardly a jungle of weeds so that it was completely concealed from view. Still, it wasn't something that would be blatantly obvious to the average hiker and that was exactly what she, Danny and Lacey had loved about the place. It was their own private getaway. They had traded secrets in that fort, cried in that fort and comforted one another in that fort.

Jo couldn't help but be assailed by those memories when she and Rico ducked inside. She was surprised but not at all disappointed to find Danny sitting there, patiently awaiting her arrival. Upon her entrance, he surged to his feet, self-consciously tucking an errant strand of hair behind his pierced ear.

"I didn't think you were going to show up," he said by way of greeting.

"Neither did I."

"Lacey didn't come with you, did she?"

Jo shook her head. "I'm pretty sure she meant it when she said she was done with you."

Danny quickly covered his disappointment over that and tipped a glance at Rico, who was all but cowering behind Jo. "Who's your friend?"

"This is Rico. Rico, this is Danny."

"Yeah, I'm well aware of who he is, Jo...thank you for the introduction though," Rico squeaked from behind her.

Jo regarded Danny with an emotionless expression, spreading her arms briefly in expectation. "Okay, I'm here. What do you want, Danny?"

"I don't know..." he sighed, "I want a lot of things. To talk. Catch up. Apologize."

"You can start anytime," Jo invited.

"I'm sorry. I should have written to you when I was in juvie but I...I honestly didn't know what to say, Jo, not then and definitely not now."

"You can start by explaining why," she replied softly, "Why did you do it? What happened that day, Danny?"

"I can't," he uttered in a thick tone, "I can't talk about it...I can't think about it. I just want to put what happened behind me. I want to start over." Suspecting that Jo wasn't going to let the subject go quite that easily, Danny smoothly changed the topic before she could press him further. "The fort's in good shape for five years. I thought it would be falling apart by now."

"Yeah, well...I've tried to keep it up," Jo confessed self-consciously, "Old habits die hard." She fixed him with a penetrating glare, very aware that he was evading her earlier question. "Are you really not going to explain yourself at all? I'm just supposed to pretend like it never happened, like you never went away?"

"You know...I'm not trying to give you a hard time or make you uncomfortable," he whispered in a surprising show of genuine candor and sincerity, "I didn't want to come back Green Grove. I didn't want to make you live through what happened back then and I don't want to live through it again either. But I'm here. I'm trying so hard, Jo. I don't know what else to do. Just...tell me what to do."

While nothing else had managed to breach the protective wall that Jo Masterson had erected around her heart, being presented with such a blatant show of Danny Desai's raw emotion and unreserved regret managed to create a sizeable dent in her defenses. Her expression gradually softened along with her stance. "I don't know, Danny," she replied in a quiet tone, "But maybe you just did it by being honest for a change. Maybe that's a start."


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Lacey Porter stared down at her lunch without much appetite. She couldn't eat a single bite but that was hardly a new occurrence, not since her past had literally collided with her present. It had been four days since Danny Desai had returned to Green Grove and, ever since that moment, her world had been distressingly off kilter. Each time she inadvertently crossed paths with him in the school corridor, her heart would immediately leap into her throat before it began pounding double-time. She'd get breathless, clammy and light-headed and as a result, would have to seek refuge in the bathroom in order to get a hold of herself.

She hadn't spoken more than a few sentences to him since his enrollment at Green Grove High School and, despite that limited contact, Danny Desai was already wrecking her, both mentally and emotionally. Thoughts of him were consuming her brain, making it impossible to eat, to concentrate or to even function in any meaningful capacity. Lacey didn't want to be curious about the physical changes in his appearance or fascinated by his long hair, his earring or his almost cocky swagger. She didn't want to care about how he was acclimating to his father's death and how he was coping with the loss. She resolutely stamped down any questions that arose within her about the time he'd spent in Huntington and whether or not the experience had been as horrible for him as she'd imagined.

That day in the hall when she had told him she was done, she'd meant every word of it...or, at least, she _wanted_ to mean it. After all, she had worked too hard and sacrificed too much to go back to that same horrible place she had been in following Danny's hearing and sentencing. Lacey was not at all eager to expose herself to the possibility of being ostracized and judged for her former friendship with him. She wanted to leave the past in the past. And yet, there remained that part of her, that incontrovertible part of her that continued to yearn for it.

Her messy feelings where Danny Desai was concerned only became messier when she began to witness the occasional and albeit brief exchanges between Jo and Danny at school. The two weren't exactly hanging out. Danny maintained his distance both in class and at lunch but it was clear that Jo had begun warming up to his presence. At most, they were simply making cordial acknowledgment of each other when they passed one another in the hallway but it was enough to catch Lacey's attention. She was keenly aware that something had changed between them. It seemed to her that a lot of the initial tension that had existed between them on Danny's first day of school had eased considerably over the course of the past week.

She wondered if Danny had possibly confessed to Jo the reason he had murdered his Aunt Tara. But, as soon as the idea occurred to Lacey she dismissed it altogether. She seriously doubted that was the case. If Danny hadn't seen the need to tell his side of the story during the five years he had spent locked up, Lacey was certain he wasn't going to unburden his soul now that he had been released. Still, there was definitely something was different between him and Jo. Lacey tried not to obsess too much over what had changed or dwell too closely on why it bothered her. And it did bother her... _a lot_.

The realization annoyed her and only increased her determination to ignore Danny's presence altogether. She resolved within herself not to care at all. Consequently, Lacey did a fabulous job at maintaining an outward show of indifference towards her former friends. She attended various afterschool committees. She hung out with her friends and laughed carelessly at their jokes. She watched her boyfriend during his soccer practice and made out with him in the hallway.

She expertly played the part of popular teen girl but, all the while, Lacey Porter felt as if she were dying inside by heart-wrenching inches. Every day she attended school was like reliving that horrible day Tara Desai had been murdered over and over and over again. It was difficult, not only because she was remembering the horror and disbelief she had felt back then but also because of the sadness she felt on Danny's behalf. It was disconcerting to discover that her heart still ached for him now as much as it had when she was an eleven year old girl.

Lacey was bothered by that as well. But no matter how hard she fought to will the feelings away, they not only remained but also seemed to grow stronger with each passing day. She honestly couldn't tolerate another minute of it. If she had to endure the unrelenting stress even one day more, Lacey was sure she would start screaming and never stop. She was beyond grateful that the weekend was imminent. Distance was exactly what she needed. Hopefully two days would be enough time to accustom herself to Danny being in her space again.

Unaware of Lacey's inner turmoil, her two best friends, Regina Crane and Sarita Henson were currently discussing Danny Desai's recent assimilation into their school. "I can't believe he's just allowed to walk around free after he killed somebody..." Sarita was remarking presently, "...It's like nothing ever happened. It's unnerving." She shuddered at the musing. "I really don't feel safe."

Regina dipped a single french fry into a blob of ketchup and popped it into her mouth before lifting her shoulders in an unconcerned shrug. "Oh whatever, Sarita! Why shouldn't he be allowed to walk around? He did his time. Besides, have you _seen_ him? That boy is _so_ hot!"

"Oh my god, Regina," Sarita gasped with a revolted grimace, "Do you hear yourself? You're like a cat in heat. It's disgusting!"

"What?" Regina cried, blinking at her with wide, innocent eyes, "Don't tell me you haven't noticed! Those intense eyes...the way he moves... _his hair_..." She hummed a low moan of satisfaction. "I could eat him up! He's gorgeous!"

" _And a killer_ ," Sarita added rather tartly, "Let's not forget that part, Reg. _Kil-ler_."

"I don't care. He's still fine."

For the majority of Regina's frivolous exchange with Sarita, Lacey had remained uncharacteristically silent. She mostly sat, moody and pensive, picking at the Cobb salad that was supposed to be her lunch with general disinterest. That fact did not go unnoticed by her friends, particularly Regina who had sensed the gradual change in her friend's disposition for the past few days now. Usually, Lacey would always weigh in on their discussions of cute boys but this time she had very little to say. In fact, the more they talked about Danny Desai, the more reserved Lacey seemed to become.

Curious about the shift in Lacey's demeanor, Regina surveyed her with a speculative stare. "I can't believe you been holding out on us, best friend," she remarked softly, "You never mentioned that your former playmate was such a hottie. What's up with that?"

"Maybe that's because I never really _talked_ about him at all, Regina," Lacey mumbled in a stiff tone, "That was kind of intentional."

"Hey...weren't you there the day it happened?" Sarita pressed slyly, "You know, the day when he..." She made a slicing motion across her neck for unmistakable emphasis. "I saw a story about it on the news the other night. You and that weird girl that wears the camouflage and boots all the time-,"

"-Her hair is absolutely tragic," Regina interjected with a giggle, earning a short laugh from Sarita before Sarita resumed her earlier account, "Yeah, that's her. She's the one. What's her name...it's right on the tip of my tongue. Sam, Charlie, Chris...Avery...?"

"It's _Jo_ , Sarita," Lacey interrupted with a flare of impatience, "Her name is Jo."

Sarita gave a flippant wave of her hand. "Whatever. I knew it was a boy's name. Anyway, on the news it said you guys were the ones who found the aunt's body. That must have been wicked freaky." She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, leaning in close to Lacey when she asked, "So is it true? Did you really find her corpse?"

"Was she fresh or had she been dead for a few days?" Regina followed up immediately.

"Ugh, gross," Sarita balked, "I don't know what I would do if I found a decomposing body. I'd be scarred for life!"

Before Lacey could even begin to make it abundantly clear that she had no intention of talking about that day with them or anyone else for that matter nor did she appreciate their disrespectful discussion about it, Regina weighed in with her own speculation on the rampant rumors circulating about the infamous Danny Desai. "Wasn't his aunt like special needs or something?" she wondered, "I heard she had MS or spina bifida or maybe it was Lou Gehrig's disease...I can't remember. It was something tragic like that. Anyway, they say she could barely lift her head and that's why she couldn't fight him off."

"Cerebral palsy," Lacey corrected sharply, "Tara Desai had a mild form of cerebral palsy and she was able to move around just fine."

"Wow, that's harsh!" Sarita snorted, "He actually offed his crippled aunt? Seriously? Who does that? How did he even seem afterward? Were his eyes all crazy? Did he just shrug it off like it was nothing? I bet he did. I bet he didn't even care. He seems like the type."

"And what type is that, Sarita?" Lacey bit out in a flare of irritation.

Sarita frowned, confused and taken aback by the surprising anger she detected in Lacey's tone. "A sociopath."

Lacey flinched at the label, even though it was notion she had entertained and even voiced aloud herself many times in the past. It definitely didn't escape Regina's attention how disturbed Lacey seemed by the idea now. "Why are you being so sensitive about it?" she prodded, her eyes narrowed in censure and suspicion, "When we found out he was going to be enrolling here, you were one of the main ones saying he was psychotic and a total freak. Have we forgotten who came up with the charming nickname 'Socio?' Now you're pearl clutching. What's that about?"

Thinning her lips at the reminder that _she_ was the one who had sparked that particular trend, Lacey took several breaths before she spoke again, hoping devoutly that she didn't sound as defensive as she felt right then when she retorted, "I'm not 'pearl clutching' and I'm _not_ being sensitive about it. I just don't understand why we have to spend our entire lunch period talking about him, okay!"

Regina and Sarita exchanged a knowing look filled with amusement. "Sen-see-tive," Sarita mocked in a suffocated, sing-song tone.

Lacey's expression became positively stony with their teasing. Regina nudged her, a crooked, impertinent grin pulling at the corner of her lips. "Lighten up, Lacey," she huffed, "Maybe you wouldn't be so edgy about everything if you simply opened up about your feelings. Tell us your fears. Help us help you." She rolled her eyes, a gesture quite incongruent with her outward altruistic cajolery.

Sarita, as well, steepled her hands together and rested her chin at the tips of her fingers, affecting an expression of exaggerated concern. "Come on, Lacey, share with us. Bare your soul. We're listening." She then promptly ruined the invitation by pretending to gag herself.

Despite her affronted feelings and general irritation with them, Lacey found herself slightly amused by their irreverent antics. She compressed her lips to keep from smiling at them. In a way, their insensitive teasing was exactly what she needed to relieve the tension that had been steadily building inside of her since Danny's return. She needed an outlet, even if it was in the form of mean girl banter.

"You guys are such complete bitches. Screw you both," she muttered but with a decided lack of heat.

"Aww, you say the sweetest things," Regina needled her in a babyish tone, "Does that mean you forgive us for finding your former friend sexy as hell? I sincerely hope so because I could totally hit that...and I think I will!"

"You're gross," Sarita declared succinctly.

"And you're jealous!"

"Um...not even close! Just for the record, Lacey, I don't find him sexy at all," Sarita intoned with a sardonic look leveled at Regina, "Convicted killers aren't my thing."

"That's because you have no taste!" Regina retorted.

"Girls...can we please not debate Danny Desai's sexiness or lack thereof from this moment forward?" Lacey pleaded in a weak tone, "I'd rather not talk about him, if it's all the same to you guys."

Regina cocked her head in thoughtful consideration of the request. "You see that's the thing that really peaks my interest...you've _never_ talked about him. Up until a week ago, I didn't even realize that you _knew_ Danny Desai, much less was around when he murdered his aunt! And here I thought we shared everything."

"I knew," Sarita inserted, "Well...at least about them being friends once upon a time. They used to be inseparable in elementary school. It was actually quite nauseating."

Armed with that new tidbit, Regina once again appraised Lacey with a probing look. "So, what gives? What is it about Danny Desai that makes you clam up, Lacey? We're your best friends. Shouldn't we know everything about you?"

Lacey covered her unease over the questioning with sarcasm. "Sorry...I didn't realize there was a code of honor for best friends that required telling each other everything. I'm sure you have your secrets too, Regina."

"But we're not talking about _my_ secrets right now," the other girl argued, "We're talking about _yours_."

The tart rejoinder Lacey had planned was abruptly drowned out by Sarita's discomfited squeak. "Speak of the devil and he shall appear." Both Lacey and Regina followed her line of sight to where Danny stood less than twenty feet away, perusing the vending machines. Lacey swallowed her reactive groan of consternation, the tension that had eased moments earlier surging anew and swelling to new heights. Just like that, she was plunged back into her usual vat of agitation and fear. Lacey checked the impulse to make a mad dash for the nearest bathroom.

Beside her, Regina was practically bouncing in her seat. She tugged eagerly at the elbow of Lacey's sleeve and pleaded in an excited whisper, "Quick! Call him over here!"

Lacey balked at the very idea. "What? No!"

"Come on!"

"I'm not doing it, Regina. Leave him alone!"

Regina narrowed her eyes in annoyance, her lower lip protruding in a petulant pout. "Fine! If you won't tell me what I want to know, then maybe I'll just get the answers directly from him," she threatened, "Maybe...I'll even invite him to my party this weekend."

As expected, Lacey's reaction to that was quick and volatile. "Regina, stop joking around! That's not funny!"

"Who says I'm kidding?"

Sarita reached over to tap Lacey's forearm in reassurance when she saw that Lacey was getting genuinely upset. "Lacey, chill out. Regina's not going to do anything. She's all talk."

The aforementioned quirked a single eyebrow in challenge. "Oh, really? We'll see about that." With a superior look of challenge directed at both of her friends, the impudent redhead swiveled around in her seat and called out, "Hey, Socio? Socio? Yoohoo! Over here!" She beckoned him forward when Danny threw a startled glance in her direction. "Yes, I'm talking to you, cutie pie! Get your butt over here."

Clearly wary of making an approach but intrigued by the invitation simply because it would bring him into closer proximity with Lacey, Danny made his way over to the lunch table with an inquisitive smile. Inevitably, the closer he got, the more his attention was drawn to Lacey. By the time he reached the table, the tension between him and Lacey became almost a tangible thing with Danny staring at her without reserve and Lacey doing everything in her power not to stare back at him. With concerted effort, however, Danny managed to tear his eyes away from her dejected profile long enough to address her outrageously flirtatious friend. It was difficult to ignore her, especially when she was leering at him in the most provocative fashion.

"Um, hello...can I help you with something?"

She batted her eyes prettily and extended her hand to him. "I'm Regina. Regina Crane, Lacey's BFF. We're practically sisters, you know."

Danny digested newfound piece of information with a thoughtful frown. "O...kay. Good to know." He shook Regina's hand briefly, making a mental note to himself to ask Lacey about it later. "Nice to meet you. I'm Danny."

"I know who you are, Socio. _Everyone_ knows who you are. In fact, we were just having a very interesting conversation with Lacey just now," Regina informed him cheerfully, "I didn't realize that you two had such a complicated history together."

"Yeah, we go way back." He slid a deliberate look over towards Lacey. "Isn't that right, Lacey?"

Unable to bear his scrutiny any longer or the tremulous response he was stirring up within her, Lacey scooted her chair back from the table with the clear objective of putting as much distance between herself and Danny Desai as possible. She could feel Danny's eyes following her every movement as she gathered her books together. It made her extremely self-conscious, so much so that she couldn't even look up when she said, "I'm gonna go, you guys. I have Bio in ten."

"So that's it?" Danny charged softly as she shifted to her feet, "You can't even look at me, Lace? You're not going to talk to me at all?"

Lacey averted her eyes, hoping to cover how unsteady he made her feel with his nearness and his words. She hated that he could unnerve her so easily, that he affected her at all. She despised the way her heart rate would quicken with his nearness and how every time he approached her he managed to create a sizeable dent in the protective, emotional armor in which she'd insulated herself. She had to get away from him so she could think again, so she could breathe again. Because Lacey knew that if she remained just one minute longer she would be unable to maintain her veneer of indifference. Then Danny would know instantly that her next declaration to him was an absolute lie.

"I don't have anything left to say to you, Danny."

"Well, _I_ have plenty to say to you," Regina inserted suggestively, coming to her feet to hook her arm with Danny's. She seemed ostensibly unperturbed by the tense exchange that had just taken place between her best friend and the school's resident bad boy, a fact that irritated Lacey more than she wanted to acknowledge. The last thing she heard as she walked away from the table was Regina making good on her threat to invite Danny to her party and his mumbled promise to "think about it." By the time Lacey cleared the cafeteria doors, she was fuming.

For the remainder of the afternoon, she practically sleepwalked through her day, vacillating between anger, annoyance and confusion. She couldn't concentrate on a single thing. She failed her Bio quiz, completely forgot to turn in her Calculus homework and earned herself an afternoon of detention for being late to English Lit. By the time the final bell rang, she was frazzled, edgy and had a pounding headache. It was little wonder then that when her steady boyfriend of nine months surprised her from behind with an ardent kiss to the crook of her neck, Lacey flinched away from him with a grimace of irritated distaste.

"God, Archie! Do you have to maul me at every opportunity? I'm not in the mood, okay!"

It was a familiar refrain he'd heard in varying degrees for the past two weeks and, not for the first time, Archie found himself growing irritated with Lacey's mercurial shifts in mood. "Well, excuse me for wanting to kiss my girlfriend!" he flung back, "I didn't realize that was a federal crime!"

"Well, did it ever cross your mind that maybe _your girlfriend_ isn't in the mood to be kissed?" she muttered. _At least, not by you_ , an insidious voice whispered in the back of her mind.

Lacey steadfastly refused to acknowledge that internal taunt. Archie Yates was the stuff most teenage girl fantasies were made of...he was tall, athletic, popular, with smoldering good looks and the perfect amount of confident swagger. He was also a fun, engaging and extremely attentive boyfriend. He'd also granted her with more patience than she probably deserved. For the life of her, Lacey could not fathom why all of that had suddenly not become enough for her anymore. If Archie's next words to her were any indication, he was wondering the same thing.

"What's going on with you, Lacey?" he grated impatiently, "You've been acting like a bitch for more than a week now!"

Lacey made a face at him. "Gee, thanks. That's nice, Archie."

"You know what I'm saying," he cajoled in a softer tone, "You've been snappy with me ever since that DePsycho kid started going here. You're constantly tense. He's not giving you hard time, is he?"

She hoped devoutly that her emotions weren't plainly evident on her face right then. Thankfully, her darker skin tone kept him from detecting her guilty blush. "Who said he was giving me hard time?"

"Look, I talked to Sarita, okay. I know you and the psycho used to hang out back in the day. I totally get that his being back here must be freaking you out a little." He gently drew her into his arms and began stroking her back in soothing circles. "You can talk to me about it, you know. I'll listen."

"There's nothing to talk about. It was a long time ago. I don't want to think about it."

He accepted that reply with a small smirk. "Okay, so if it's not Desai then why are you acting like such an ass? It's not a good look, babe."

The teasing affection in his tone was quite effective at disarming her. Lacey slumped against him, allowing herself to relax in his embrace for the first time since he'd wrapped her in his arms. "I have detention," she mumbled into his chest unhappily, "I was late for English and Mrs. Kapalowski has it out for me."

Archie chuckled at the idea. "No way! My girl? Late for class? Detention?" He tsked her. "Next thing I know you'll be hanging out at lunch with the slackers."

"Don't tease me about it," she grumbled, "She called me out in front of the entire class. I was so embarrassed."

"So I guess this means you won't be at my practice this afternoon, huh?"

"Nope. Sorry about that. But I'm trying to focus on the positives. At least detention will give me some extra time to study for my Bio midterm. I'm going to need to score a high grade on it after bombing the quiz today."

He tipped an incredulous look down at her, his brow knit in a concerned frown. "Wait a minute, you failed your quiz too?"

"Yep. Spectacularly."

"That's not like you at all."

"It's just one grade," Lacey sighed, "I'm having an off day."

Archie appraised her with an inquiring look. "And you're sure nothing went down with the freak today that shook you up..."

Lacey shrugged out of his arms, once again defensive and guilty that he had managed to discern the true reason for her irritability so easily. "No!" she lied stridently, "I already told you it has nothing to do with him. It's about Regina..." she prevaricated on the fly, "...She was just...being Regina as always and she said something that got under my skin. We had a little fight. That's all." Lacey knew she didn't have to elaborate further. For some inexplicable reason, Archie seemed to have a particular antagonism towards Regina. He almost never pressed her on details on their friendship or what they did together, almost as if he preferred to pretend that Regina didn't exist at all.

"And you're sure that's all it is? Just Regina being Regina?"

She rose up on her tiptoes and looped her arms around his neck to peck a kiss to his lips, hoping the show of affection would distract him from questioning her further. "Of course, that's all it is," she whispered, "I'm sorry for being a bitch earlier."

He grinned at her and hugged her close. "Really? Kiss me again and maybe I'll forgive you."

After she had indulged Archie with more kisses and he had left for practice, Lacey finally dropped the facade of happy girlfriend and slumped forward in dejected misery. She felt awful. She had a caring, devoted boyfriend and she couldn't even treat him the way he deserved because she was too obsessed with her former best friend turned murderer. She didn't know what was wrong with her. For anyone else the choice would have been a no-brainer. But her? No, she had to be _conflicted_.

Aggravated with herself and the situation in general, Lacey made her way to the nearest bathroom with the intention of splashing some cold water on her face. She had just finished shutting off the tap when Jo abruptly exited the stall at the far end of the bathroom. Both girls abruptly rooted in place at the sight of one another. Jo was the first to regain her composure enough to speak. She approached the sink next to Lacey to wash her hands.

"Really, Lacey, we've got to stop meeting like this," she teased dryly.

Lacey bit back her answering smile. "Yeah, it's becoming habitual." An awkward beat of silence meandered between them before Lacey asked, "So, how have you been?"

Jo took her time drying her hands before chucking the sodden paper towel in the garbage. "I've been good. And you?"

"I've been okay. Really can't complain."

A heavy silence gradually stretched out between them. Jo fiddled with the strap on her backpack. Lacey traced the edge of her Biology textbook. Jo coughed. Lacey contemplated the frayed ends of her hair. Both girls surreptitiously avoided making eye contact with the one another. Finally, Jo cleared her throat. "Well, this is painfully awkward."

"Agreed," Lacey said, "I can't believe nine years of friendship has degenerated into two minutes of uncomfortable small talk."

"Well, that's the way you wanted it, right?"

"That's not the way I wanted it," Lacey refuted softly. Stunned blue eyes ricocheted to Lacey's face. "This wasn't where I imagined we'd end up, Jo. In fact...I've been thinking lately that maybe you and I could try and fix that."

Jo gaped at her in speechless incredulity. "Fix what? You mean our friendship?"

The derision in her tone aggravated Lacey's already touchy feelings of self-doubt. "You don't have to make it sound so ridiculous," she retorted in budding affront.

"I guess I'm just wondering why you're suddenly so preoccupied with the past and fixing things between us? Why do you even care? It never seemed to bother you before now."

"It's _always_ bothered me, Jo. I guess with Danny being back I've been thinking of the way things used to be between us and...and I miss it. I miss you."

The confession was clearly the last thing Jo had expected to hear from her. She opened her mouth to make a response only to immediately clamp it shut when she realized she couldn't find the words. Finally, she settled with a stammered, "I...I don't know what to say to that."

"Say you want to start over too," Lacey suggested softly, "Listen, my friend Regina is having a party tomorrow night. I was wondering if you might want to come by...hang out for awhile. We could talk."

"You mean me, you and your fake friends?" Jo balked dubiously, "No, thank you."

And just like that, the antagonism between them resurged. "Wow, judgmental much? You don't even know them, Jo."

"I don't _want_ to know them. I'm sure they're stuck up, snarky monsters! It's people like them who made middle school absolute hell for me!"

"Watch it, Jo! Those 'stuck-up, snarky monsters' got me through some really tough times, okay!"

"Oh yeah, that's right," Jo drawled tightly, "Because they were the friends to you that _I_ should've have been! They're flawless in your eyes and I'm a complete failure!" She plowed all ten fingers through her wild, blonde curls, tears springing unbidden to her blue eyes. "God, Lacey! You _do_ realize that I was _sick_ , don't you? I didn't _want_ to be that way! I wasn't _trying_ to be a head case, okay! I was lost! I did the best I could!"

The raw helplessness in her words sparked Lacey's own anguished confession. "I know that. I didn't blame you for your problems, but... I was _thirteen_ , Jo! I was a kid and... I needed someone too and I couldn't handle it. Not with everything else going on with Danny and then my mom and dad! _I just couldn't handle anymore, okay!_ "

"I know," Jo whispered gruffly, "I get it, Lacey. I do. It is what it is, right?"

Lacey bit her lower lip to control its sudden trembling. "Right."

"Any friendship would have broken under that kind of stress," Jo whispered, "It's pretty naive to think that it could have lasted forever."

"Maybe, but... That doesn't mean we can't start over. I meant what I told you before. I really do miss you, Jo."

"I miss you too," Jo sighed softly after a brief beat of silence, "For a long time now."

"Then we should make it right. I want to make it right."

"And what about Danny?" Jo prompted quietly, "Do you want to make it right with him too?"

The question clearly struck a nerve. Almost immediately, Lacey's gaze skittered away. "This has nothing to do with Danny."

"It has _everything_ to do with Danny," Jo refuted, "You, me and him...we were always a unit. He wants another chance with us, Lacey. He wants to be friends again."

Lacey shook her head in denial of Jo's tacit suggestion that they extend a mutual olive branch to Danny. "Are you sure that's a good idea to get involved with him again? He's not the Danny we remember, Jo."

"How would you know? You haven't spoken two words to him since he came back!"

"But _you_ have!" Lacey retorted with an edge of accusation, "I've seen you talking to him in the hall! Are you crazy? How can you let him back into your life, Jo? What are you thinking?"

"He didn't want to come back here, Lacey. Green Grove is the last place he wants to be. It holds just as many bad memories for him as it does for us."

"Is that what he told you?"

"He doesn't have to tell me. I can see it in his eyes. He's drowning here." She surveyed Lacey with a beseeching stare. "He needs us, Lacey."

That declaration chilled Lacey for multiple reasons and left her trembling visibly. "You need to be careful," she warned ex-best friend direly, "Don't let yourself get sucked into those big, brown eyes of his, Jo. You don't know who he is anymore. You don't know what he's capable of."

In characteristic form, Jo's first inclination was to dismiss Lacey's cautious wisdom with a retort that was dripping with sarcasm, not because she didn't harbor the exact same misgivings that Lacey did but because she wasn't ready to entertain the possibility that Lacey might be right about Danny. "Would you stop being so melodramatic all the time? It's _Danny_! We used to play freeze tag together, for goodness sake! It's not like he's not going to strangle me to death!"

"Yeah, you say that now but look what happened to Tara."

That chilling reminder obliterated every ounce of Jo's bluster in an instant. Color immediately drained from her features as she fought back the macabre mental images that bombarded her with the mere mention of Tara Desai. "Don't talk about her."

"It's the truth, isn't it?" Lacey swallowed past the rising lump in her throat, reluctant to ask her next question but unable to keep from asking it as well. "Does he? Talk about her, I mean."

"Never," Jo mumbled, "He never says a word about her. He said he wants to leave the past in the past."

Lacey frowned. "He doesn't mention what happened at all?"

"It's not like we've had long heart to hearts, Lacey. Just a handful of short conversations and that's it."

"And?"

"And whenever I _do_ talk to him, I...I just don't get the impression that he could hurt anyone, okay! Sometimes he seems like the same old Danny."

"But he _did_ hurt someone," Lacey reminded her grimly, "He killed her. You shouldn't forget that, Jo." _And neither should I_ , she added regretfully in her heart. She definitely couldn't afford to forget it either.


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

Rico Velazquez knew that it probably wouldn't be the manliest thing in the world to duck beneath his table and hide like the cowardly lion in the _Wizard of Oz_ but when Danny Desai casually strolled through the doors of _Johnnycakes_ , the local diner and his usual hangout with Jo Masterson, he seriously contemplated giving into the impulse. "Whatever you do," he advised Jo in a slow, deliberate tone, " _Don't_ turn around and then look up."

The caution proved to be futile. The instant Rico issued his warning Jo did the exact opposite of what he'd warned her _not_ to do. She made eye contact with Danny almost immediately. He favored her with a crooked smile and lifted his hand in tentative greeting. Jo swiveled back to face Rico with a heavy groan. Rico face palmed. "I said don't, _don't_ look up," he hissed, "How is that confusing?"

"Is there any chance at all that he didn't see me?" Jo wondered mournfully.

Rico gave a terse shake of his head and began compulsively arranging his study notes as Danny began to approach their table. "I'd say that's a negative."

Jo expelled yet another groan. Since her last conversation with Lacey at school before leaving for the diner with Rico, Jo had been seriously considering the wisdom of getting involved with Danny Desai again. In the solitude of her most inner thoughts, she could admit to herself that Lacey had a valid point. Jo didn't really know Danny, not like she had before. The person he had been before he went away to juvie and the person he was now were definitely _not_ the same.

This new Danny was secretive, mistrustful and particularly guarded with himself. That wasn't to say that there weren't things about him that remained familiar. He still made easy jokes and teased her the way he had when they were kids. He could still be a complete goofball. The same traits that had made her like him as a small child were the same traits that compelled her to like him _now_ , but it was clear that Danny kept a portion of himself hidden away. The days when they knew everything about one another and told each other their deepest, darkest secrets were clearly done.

She didn't exactly blame him for his reticence either. After all, he had spent five years in what was basically a high security prison for kids. He never talked about that either. But Jo was perceptive enough to realize that the experience had likely affected him profoundly and changed him in ways she would never understand. Jo understood that she couldn't expect for things to go back to the way they had been but, the problem was, that was exactly what she _needed_.

At the end of the day, the truth was plain and unavoidable. Daniel Ramesh Desai had served a five year sentence for murdering his aunt in cold blood. He hadn't offered up a single explanation as to why. He failed to display even a trace of remorse over what he had done. In fact, he refused to talk about the incident altogether. Those decisions, while Jo could respect them, very much felt like deal-breakers to her as well. Because if she couldn't believe that _her_ Danny was still inside of him somewhere, the Danny who had been her best friend and surrogate brother, then how could she ever come to trust him again? How would they ever be friends again?

Those unanswered questions continued to tumble through her mind as Danny stepped up to their table with a warm smile. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

Rico took a huge gulp of his cola and cleared his throat several times before choking out an uncomfortable, "Good. Good. Good. We're really good! Goodness all around! And you? Are you good? You should be good. I hope you're good."

"Yeah, I'm good..." Danny replied carefully, "You okay, Rico? You seem kind of tense."

"I'm not tense. Do I look tense? I'm not at all tense!" Rico babbled in denial only to ruin it with a stumbling confession a split second later, "Actually, yes, I am. I'm tense! I am _extremely_ tense! You kind of bring that out of me."

"Well, okay then," Danny said, sliding a look over towards Jo, acutely aware of the fact that she had yet to speak a single word to him. It wasn't that they had suddenly become instant buddies again since he'd returned from school but it was clear from the way she was avoiding his eyes that something was up. "What about you, Jo?" he asked softly, "Do I make you tense too?"

Jo lifted her head to regard him with a woeful look. "This can't keep happening, Danny."

"What can't keep happening?"

"You can't just keep walking up to me in public like this," she admonished him quietly, "like...like it's an ordinary thing or something. Did you forget? My dad is the chief of police!"

"Right."

"It...It just doesn't look good, you know?"

"Yeah..." he replied, becoming uncomfortably aware of the looks he was beginning to draw from the diner's patrons. It was a forceful reminder to him that no amount of time would ever erase what he had done. The stigma would follow Danny wherever he went. It was clear that Jo had decided she didn't want any part of that. Danny didn't blame her.

He quickly concealed his disappointment and discomfort behind a tight smile. "Listen, I just came over to say 'hello.' I'm not stalking you. I'm here for the pie. My mom has a thing for it."

"Yeah...I remember."

"Anyway, I'm gonna go now." He surveyed her with one, last lingering look before he added, "I'll be sure not to come up to you anymore. Take care of yourself, Jo. You too, Rico."

He was already on his way out of the diner when Jo was unexpectedly seized with regret over her actions and swiveled around in her seat to call him back. But, whether he simply hadn't heard her calling him or he was choosing to ignore her right then, Danny kept on walking and he didn't look back. Frustrated with herself and him because he had left her with no choice but to chase after him, Jo grabbed hold of her jacket and started to slide from the booth. Rico, upon realizing her intent, proceeded to have an unreserved freakout.

"What are you doing? You can't actually be thinking of going after him! Let him go!"

Jo's expression was torn. She could easily acknowledge the validity in Rico's concern but it was at war with her own natural inclination towards compassion, especially where Danny was concerned. "I just feel like he's dealing with enough rejection," she argued, "I don't want to be one more person who turns their back on him."

"He's a big boy. He can handle it. _Let him go._ "

Jo fixed him with a recalcitrant glare. "What is this? I thought after the fort you were okay with him being around."

"I...I wouldn't necessarily classify my feelings as 'okay.' More like terrified of being murdered, dismembered and stuffed in between boxes of winter wear in his basement. It's prudent for me not to poke him."

"You can relax. Danny doesn't have a basement."

"This isn't a joke, Jo. You're getting too close to him," Rico warned her softly.

"So I've been told already...by my parents, by you, by Lacey. I get that you're concerned, but... I have to listen to my instincts."

" _Your instincts?_ Since when do you have instincts? What does that even mean?"

Jo expelled a resigned sigh, knowing that she would never be able to explain her motivation to Rico because she didn't completely understand them herself. "I know it's crazy but, I have to do this!" Before Rico could disagree with her further or, worse yet, get the crazy notion to block her exit, Jo quickly scooted from the booth and went running from the diner. After taking a few seconds to assimilate in which direction Danny had gone, Jo went sprinting after him. He had made it almost a full block before she finally managed to catch up with him.

"God, Desai..." she gasped, bracing her hands against her knees in an effort to catch her breath, "...since when did you take up power walking?"

He cocked his head to regard her with a curious smile. "What are you doing, Masterson?"

"Working out apparently."

Danny snorted a laugh. "I thought you just told me that it wasn't a good idea for us to talk in public."

"That's still true," she acknowledged, "But...you complicate things, Danny Desai. You have to know how much you complicate things, especially _my_ life."

He grinned at her in a mixture of chagrin and amusement. "If it makes you feel better to know, I don't do it on purpose."

"It doesn't. But thanks for making the effort."

Given the circumstances, Danny knew he should probably feel guilty for placing her in such an awkward position. Jo had a legitimate point after all. Her father _was_ the chief of police. In fact, Kyle Masterson had been one of the key officers involved in gathering evidence against him in his aunt's murder. Jo's father had essentially helped put him in Huntington. He'd almost seemed _eager_ to put Danny away. Furthermore, Kyle Masterson had even spoken against Danny being granted an early release because he didn't believe Danny had been rehabilitated at all. With all of that in mind, Danny seriously doubted Jo's parents were thrilled by the idea of her hanging out with him again. If he were a better person, he might have let her off the hook and reassured her that she didn't have any obligation to him. But he wasn't a better person. More than that, he needed her too much.

Being back in Green Grove had proved far more difficult than Danny had anticipated. When he was home, he was assailed with constant memories of Tara, some so potent they practically paralyzed him. His mother claimed he was suffering from PTSD but, whatever it was, it kept him from sleeping most nights. Then there was also the constant disagreements Karen, especially due to her insistence that he begin therapy for his "issues." Home was definitely not a haven for Danny these days, not that it had ever much been.

When he was at school, he was faced with the daily ridicule of his peers day after day after day. There was nowhere he could really go to find relief from the emotional burden he carried and the constant stress was emotionally taxing. It also didn't help to know that Lacey wanted nothing at all to do with him. Jo, and their brief, but cordial exchanges in between classes, had become his one and only bright spot. With everything in his life so hopeless and dismal, it wasn't surprising that he would cling to Jo and the possibility of rekindling his friendship with her like a lifeline.

"So what now?" he asked her, "Did you have something specific in mind when you chased me down or was your plan for us to stand here on the sidewalk and grin stupidly at one another?"

"My god, you're an ass, Danny," Jo sighed in laughing chagrin, not wanting to be disarmed by his smile and easygoing charm but finding herself succumbing to both nonetheless, "I can't figure you out."

"There's nothing to figure out, Jo. What you see is what you get."

"We both know that's not true."

"I have things that I don't want to talk about the same as you do. We're not so different."

"Okay," Jo conceded gamely, "So then what _do_ you want to talk about?"

"Pizza. Where can I get really good pizza?"

"I could tell you," Jo considered with a slow smile, "Or I could _show_ you."

Twenty minutes later, Danny and Jo were squeezed into a cramped, two person booth at a local pizzeria called _Savelli's._ It was a tiny, dinky dive located on the end of one of the strip malls and easily overlooked. Inside, however, the restaurant held a sort of old world charm, decorated with stained glass hanging lamps, fishbowl candles, loads of Italian memorabilia and red vinyl booths. They even had an authentic juke box. And the pizza was every bit as fantastic as Jo had promised.

"I don't remember this place growing up," Danny remarked after he'd swallowed latest bite, "How'd you find it?"

"Well, it's only been around for about two years," Jo explained, "Most people don't know about it so this place has kind of become my sanctuary when I need some 'me' time."

"Is that how you found it? Because you needed 'me' time?"

"Actually, I was trying to avoid a crowd of kids from school," Jo confessed wryly, "I ran in here so they wouldn't see me."

"Why?"

Jo ducked her head and replied in a suffocated tone, "I guess because I wasn't in the mood to be called 'freak' and 'loser' for the hundredth time that day." She chanced a look up at Danny through her lashes, noting the turbulent emotion flickering in the depth of his dark eyes. "I know what it's like, Danny...having to live through that every day. You can act like it doesn't affect you all you want but, I know it sucks."

"Yeah well...you didn't do anything to deserve it. I did," he mumbled self-deprecatingly, "Was it because of me...how they treated you?"

"Partly yes and partly no," she hedged, "I...um...kind of went a little crazy after you got sent away."

"Define 'crazy.'"

"Like 'time in a mental ward and taking anti-depressants for an entire year' crazy."

Danny cringed at the revelation, inundated with a fresh onslaught of guilt and remorse. "God, Jo...I'm so sorry that happened to you," he uttered thickly. He closed his eyes with a low groan. "Your mom and dad must hate my guts."

"My mom...she has a lot of mixed feelings about you. My dad, on the other hand... Let's just say you're not exactly his favorite person."

"He thinks I should still be serving time, doesn't he?"

"Essentially."

"Excellent." Danny appraised her with a bewildered look, simultaneously grateful and ashamed that she was willing to talk to him at all. "How is it that _you_ don't hate me right now?"

"I tried. Believe me, I tried _really_ hard. You make it impossible, Desai."

He slouched down in his seat, picking sullenly at the pepperoni on his pizza slice. "Not for everyone."

"If you're talking about Lacey right now, she doesn't hate you, Danny. She just _wants_ to hate you."

"What's the difference?"

"Because she's lying to herself and fighting a losing battle. Trust me, I should know."

As much as Danny wanted to latch onto her words of comfort, he struggled to keep his feelings reserved. His estrangement from Lacey Porter was a continual sore spot for Danny. It wasn't her anger towards him or even her understandable wariness. That he could understand. But her absolute refusal to talk to him, the way she seemed altogether unaffected by his return...that hurt almost past the point of bearing. Watching her share some easy camaraderie with her friends and _her boyfriend_ day after day was a forceful reminder of all the things he would never share with her again. Danny mourned the loss.

And because he knew there was absolutely nothing he could do about it right then, he decided not to focus on that at all. Instead, he addressed the disheartening revelation Jo had just made to him. "So...uh... Is everything...you...you know...are you doing...?" he asked tentatively, "I mean...are you still...is there..."

"I need a complete sentence here, Danny," she teased, "Use your words."

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes. I'm good. I've been off the meds for a year and I see a therapist twice a month." Danny wasn't quick enough in concealing his grimace of distaste as he took a sip of his cola. Jo bit back a knowing smile. "What? You have something against therapy?"

"No. I'm sure it works for some people."

"But not for you?"

Danny shrugged. "I could talk about my problems until I'm blue in the face," he said, "It's never going to change anything."

Noting the subtle darkening in his eyes and discerning the possible reason for it, Jo whispered, "I'm sorry about your dad, Danny. I know how much he meant to you. It's must have been hard losing him like you did and then not being able to attend his funeral."

"I'm okay."

"If it means anything to you...the service was nice."

He pinned her with a piercing look. "You went?"

Jo nodded. "Yeah, me and my family. Lacey was there with her mom and sister too. It was sad. Your dad was always really nice to me."

"Yeah, he liked you," Danny recalled with a thread of nostalgia, "I think maybe you were like the daughter he always wanted but never had."

"Let's not get too carried away. Your dad adored you and you know it."

Danny's countenance lost much of its warmth with that statement. "Who knows what my dad did or didn't feel about me?" he sighed, "I certainly can't ask him now."

Jo peered at him with a thoughtful frown, her curiosity peaked by his cryptic declaration and sudden shift in mood. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," he replied, his usual inscrutable expression reasserting itself. "How about we switch this up a little and I ask _you_ the questions for a change?"

Sensing the unspoken challenge in his words, Jo reclined back in her seat and appraised him with an expression that clearly stated, "Hit me with your best shot." She made a beckoning gesture with both of her hands. "What do you want to know, Desai? Bring it. Unlike you, I have nothing to hide."

"All right. Tell me why you and Lacey aren't friends anymore." Jo's superior smirk faltered within seconds. Danny managed to keep his triumphant smile at bay over how easily he'd managed to fluster her. "I know something's different with you two," he continued, "You're always hanging out with Rico and she's always with that girl Regina but the two of you are never together."

"What? Are you spying on us?"

Danny took another sip of his drink. "What you call 'spying,' I call being highly cognizant of my surroundings."

Jo crossed her arms in blatant skepticism. "Uh-huh. Not buying it."

"I don't have any friends, Jo. It gives me a lot of time to be observant. I've gotten into people watching lately. It's quite fascinating. Besides, you're not that hard to figure out. You've referred to Rico as your 'best friend' on several different occasions. I'm just wondering when that stopped being Lacey."

"Rico's been great to me," Jo told him, "He was the only person in school to give me a chance when everyone else had written me off and treated me like I was worthless. I wouldn't have survived the last couple of years without him." She nibbled her lip pensively. "I feel kind of bad for ditching him earlier...which is completely _your_ fault, by the way! Stupid instincts."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, bring it down a notch there, Masterson. I'm not trying to imply anything. Rico seems like a good guy. He's a little on the spastic side but, I can tell he cares about you. That still doesn't explain what happened between you and Lacey."

"I'm sure being as _observant_ as you are you've noticed that Lacey runs with the cool kids now. She doesn't have time for rejects."

The underlying bitterness and pain in her tone took Danny by surprise. "You're saying that she ditched you? That doesn't sound like Lacey at all."

"'Ditched' is too harsh a description. Let's say that we 'drifted apart' instead. That sounds less jarring, don't you think?"

"So which was it? Did she bail on you or did you just stop being friends?"

Jo expelled a heavy sigh. "You already know that I had some...some _problems_ adjusting after you were sent away," she told him, "I guess that was hard on Lacey. She couldn't handle my breakdown on top of everything else she was going through. You know her parents got divorced not too long after you went away? It was pretty awful. I guess she was barely hanging on just like I was. She didn't ditch me so much as we sort of...stopped talking to each other."

"So it _was_ my fault you two quite being friends. I ruined everything," Danny surmised with genuine regret, his guilt over the damage he'd left in the wake of his past choices resurging anew. He bit out a soft, self-deprecating curse. "I suspected as much. I didn't just blow _my_ life apart that day, did I? I completely destroyed you guys too."

"Please don't blame yourself for that," Jo pleaded, "It probably would have happened eventually anyway. Lacey and I were always polar opposites. We could never agree on anything. If she said 'up' then I said 'down.' If she wanted to go right then I inevitably wanted to go left. It was a constant push and pull with us."

"Yeah, I remember. But when you guys _did_ agree on something, you were a force to be reckoned with," Danny recalled with a fond smile.

"Yes, we were..." Jo agreed gruffly.

"I miss what we had together. I miss her. And I miss you, Jo."

"I don't know if we're the same people anymore, Danny. Too much has happened. Too much time has passed."

"I don't believe that. You're exactly the same person you always were, Jo, just older and wiser. And so is Lacey."

Jo frowned at his unreserved confidence on the matter. "What makes you so sure about that? Did you learn that from your 'people watching?'" she finished, complete with air quotes.

"Um...no. Actually, I knew when I came back to Green Grove that if there was any chance of reconnecting with either of you, I was going to have to start with you first," he said, "I figured between you and Lacey, _you_ would be the one most willing to forgive me. You always did lead with your heart, Masterson. Lacey is a lot more cautious than you are. It's going to take me some time to break her down... _if_ I can break her down."

The fact that he so candidly confessed to manipulating her and, apparently, without an ounce of shame about it either left Jo sputtering in both affront and awe. "Wow. You devious little sh-,"

"Ah, ah, ah...let's not resort to name calling. You asked me. I get points for being honest, at least."

"So basically you're saying that you _targeted_ me because I was the weaker of the two!"

"I'm saying that I knew if anyone was going to give me a second chance, it was going to be you, Jo Marie Masterson."

As usual, with minimal effort, he disarmed her growing irritation with him with charming candor. "I still hate you, Danny," she muttered, but the words lacked any real anger.

He offered her a small smile in response before his expression became abruptly shuttered and gloomy. "In the end, none of it really matters anyway because Lacey is never going to forgive me."

"Don't give up. She'll come around... _eventually_."

"Right," he grunted without any true conviction, "How's that working out on your end?"

"Actually..." Jo drawled out deliberately, "Lacey told me today that she wanted to be friends again."

He shifted upright in his seat, a tiny sliver of hope unfurling in his heart with Jo's disclosure. "She did?"

"Yeah, she did. We're making a little progress with each other, I guess. She invited me to that lame party Regina Crane is throwing at her house tomorrow night...though part of me kinda feels like it might have been a pity invite, so..."

Danny didn't process the last of her statement at all. His features were already brightening with optimism and excitement. "Really? Are you going to go? You should go!"

"Whoa now, slow your roll there, Quickdraw! I'm not even completely sure she meant it. Lacey's been real caught up in the past lately. You coming back to Green Grove has really thrown her off of her A-game. I think she might be feeling a little nostalgic and vulnerable and that's what's provoking this sudden need she has to fix the past or whatever."

"Is that so?" he speculated, "She wants to fix the past? I certainly can't tell."

"I've caught her hyperventilating in the girls' bathroom _twice_ this week. Something or _someone's_ affecting her. Methinks Lacey Porter isn't as cool and composed as she wants everyone to believe."

Danny failed miserably at quelling the boyish smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. "You really think so?"

Jo choked back a laugh at his barely restrained glee. "Oh my goodness, Danny, you're actually happy because she's miserable! Could you be any more obvious?"

He blinked at her with wide-eyed innocence. "I don't know what you mean."

"You know exactly what I mean. You still have a crush on her, don't you?" His sputtering protests didn't discourage her in the least. "Admit it, Danny! You still like Lacey."

"What? No!"

"That denial might actually be believable if you could make eye contact with me right now."

He made a deliberate effort to meet her eyes squarely. "I was eleven."

"You like her."

"She has a boyfriend."

" _You like her_ ," she emphasized again.

"She _hates_ me, Jo!"

"And you still like her!" she finished in a singsong tone.

"Okay, okay, you win. It's true. I still have feelings for Lacey. Big deal."

"So what are you going to do about it?" Jo charged softly.

Danny considered his limited options for a few seconds before deciding, rather impulsively, "I'm going to take you to Regina Crane's party tomorrow night."

Jo burst out into uproarious laughter at the impetuous proposal before abruptly becoming straight-faced again. "No."

"Hear me out, first. This can be win/win for us both."

"Again... _no_. I'm not going to waste my Saturday night with a bunch of drunk, elitist idiots."

"You got something better to do?"

"Picking the sweaty bits of lint from in between my toes would be preferable."

Danny grimaced. "Thank you, Jo, for that colorful visual."

"I aim to please."

"But, let's not forget...Lacey invited you to this thing. She's making an effort. She wants to be friends again. Don't you want that too? Don't you miss her, Jo?"

She raked him with a disgusted glance. "That's really dirty, Desai. Have you no shame?"

"I need to do this, okay," Danny whispered earnestly, "I need to fix things with Lacey...for you and for me. All of this happened...everything with our friendship happened because of what _I_ did. I have to find a way to make it right. Please, help me to do that."

Jo released a billowing sigh of unenthusiastic acquiesce. "This is the worst idea you've ever had," she grumped, "We're going to get kicked out in two seconds."

"Why would we be kicked out? I was invited to the party too."

"You?" Jo balked with a dubious snort, "No offense, Danny, but who would invite you?"

"The hostess herself," Danny provided superiorly, "Regina Crane. She asked me to come during lunch period today."

"I'll just be she did ask you to come."

His mouth fell open with a mock gasp. "Jo Marie Masterson, you didn't just make a naughty pun, did you? I'm impressed."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Whatever. So we're really going to this thing, huh?" One glance at Danny's face made it clear his mind was set. "Great. Well," Jo muttered halfheartedly, "at least the evening is bound to be an interesting one."

He grinned, a broad, genuine smile with teeth actually visible and eyes twinkling with actual merriment. Jo couldn't help but offer a grudging smile in return. "That's the spirit. It's gonna work out, Jo," he said as true hope swelled in his heart for the first time since he had returned to Green Grove, "I've got a really good feeling about this."


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Judy Porter stood in the threshold of her eldest daughter's bedroom and watched with a small, amused smile as Lacey growled under her breath and essentially peeled through every outfit she had in her closet, before tossing them haphazardly onto her bed. Sweaters, skirts and various blouses joined the growing plethora of clothing piled atop her mattress. Finally, after having failed in uncovering whatever it was that she had been searching for, Lacey abruptly stepped back from her closet and flopped onto her bed amid the rumpled mounds of clothing with a heavy groan.

"That's it! I give up," she flared in frustration, "I don't think I'm going to go to Regina's party tonight."

Her outward theatrical proclamation elicited a dubious snort from her mother. Nonplussed by her daughter's antics, Judy strode forward with purposeful intent and began picking through the piles and piles of Lacey's rejected clothing. "Surely, you have something appropriate to wear underneath all this mess," she clucked, "I refuse to take you shopping for any more clothes, Lacey Deanna Porter!"

Lacey rolled over onto her belly with a miserable whimper. "It's not about the clothes, Mom. It's me."

The hoarsened quality to Lacey's words caused Judy to freeze in place. She couldn't see Lacey's face right then but she had absolutely no doubts that her daughter was crying. That single realization alone was enough to alarm Judy. Lacey didn't cry. She volunteered. She studied. She went out with her friends. She found any and every form of distraction she could to keep from dwelling on whatever it was that was making her unhappy.

Even as a baby, she had never fussed for very long. With the eventual discovery of her hands and feet, an infant Lacey had learned to placate and entertain herself until her needs were finally satisfied. She was, by her very nature, a self soother. Crying and fits of temper had never been an option before. Judy couldn't decide if she was relieved that Lacey was finally releasing some of her pent up emotion...or if she was concerned.

She reached out to place a comforting hand on her daughter's trembling shoulder, her heart aching anew when Lacey rolled over to reveal cheeks stained with fresh tears. "Oh, baby..." Judy whispered, bending forward to gather Lacey into her arms just as she dissolved into hiccupping sobs.

But almost as soon as Judy started to tighten her hold on Lacey so that she could break down completely, Lacey caught herself and immediately shrugged out of her mother's embrace to scrub furiously at her wet cheeks with her forearms. "Sorry. Sorry," she muttered, "I don't know what that was about."

"It's okay if you need to cry, Lacey," Judy encouraged, "In fact, you might feel better if you let out some of what you're holding inside."

"No, I won't feel better. I'm not going to be like Jo, okay! I'm not going to fall apart right now," she refuted, struggling visibly with the effort to compose herself again, "It's not going to fix anything and I need to keep my focus."

At the mention of Jo Masterson, a name she hadn't heard Lacey bring up in quite some time, Judy shoved aside the pile of clothing and eased down into the empty space beside Lacey. For a moment, she merely sat in silence, studying her daughter's dejected profile and noting how incredibly lost Lacey appeared. When Lacey had no inclination to explain her brief yet undeniably volatile crying jag, Judy reached over to pluck up Lacey's clammy hand and press it between her own.

"What's going on with you, honey? Did you have a fight with Jo recently? I didn't realize that you two were talking again."

Lacey looked away and bit her lip. "Well, we are and we aren't. And no...we didn't have a fight. Not really. You know Jo and I never see eye to eye. That's nothing new."

"Is it Regina then? Has she done something?"

"Regina's _always_ doing something. But it's not her either."

Her mother wasn't surprised by the answer. She had expected as much but part of her was hoping devoutly for any possibility other than the one she suspected. A fallout with her best girlfriend was definitely a preferred alternative to another something that Judy didn't even want to consider. Still, she felt compelled to ask about that as well, somehow already knowing the answer long before Lacey had given any real confirmation on the matter.

"Is...Is it about Danny then?" Judy asked hesitantly.

Much to her mother's mounting dread, Lacey validated Judy's intuition with an unhappy nod. "He's only been back in Green Grove for a week," Lacey muttered, "and already he's turning my entire life upside down. I can't sleep. I can't eat. I have nightmares about him almost every night. When I'm at school, he's around every corner I turn. And if he's not physically there then someone is whispering about him. I can't escape."

"Has he said something to frighten you...done something?"

"No. It's nothing like that, Mom. He says he wants us to be friends again."

"Oh? And what do you want, sweetie?"

Lacey shrugged her shoulders in noncommittal response. "I want my life to feel normal again, Mom," she whispered thickly, "I want to be the person I was before he came back here. I worked so hard to put everything behind me and now it feels like I'm right back to where I was before. Suddenly, I'm that eleven year old girl again and I'm scared _all the time_. It sucks!"

Judy Porter digested that broken declaration with a poised calm she did not feel. There was no denying that with his release from juvenile corrections, Danny Desai had inadvertently thrown her entire household into upheaval. Once again she had reporters hounding both her and her daughters. Furtive glances and furious whispers from her neighbors had swelled anew. Within her social circles, her secondhand connection to Green Grove's most infamous murderer was being rehashed. Even her clients were beginning to grow uncomfortable with the renewed scrutiny she was under. It was almost like living through Tara Desai's murder all over again. The only difference now was that she wasn't fending her way through a messy divorce.

Her girls, however, were as vulnerable as ever. Clara had only been seven years old when Danny was convicted and sentenced. She didn't really have many clear memories of Danny Desai but those that she did have were positive ones. He had never resented her for wanting to tag along on his adventures with Lacey and Jo. He'd always treated her with patience, kindness and affection. What she remembered about Danny was that he was a boy who had not only been her sister's friend, but _her_ friend as well. The image she had of Danny and the image portrayed by the media simply did not compute for her. So, when Clara learned that he was returning to Green Grove, her natural curiosity and nostalgia had made her very open to the idea of inviting Danny back into their lives again. Judy, of course, wasn't having that at all.

Keeping Lacey isolated from Danny, however, proved to be a trickier feat. Danny and Lacey were now enrolled in the same high school. Short of pulling Lacey out mid-semester and home-schooling her, an option that was absolutely impossible due to Judy's heavy work schedule, she had little choice other than to watch her baby girl struggle to attend school day after day with the boy who had blown her life apart. It was a tough thing to do and Judy felt a fair amount of resentment towards Danny and his mother for the unintentional hell they were putting her family through.

But then there was also the other side of it, the side of her that continued to harbor some affection and concern for a young man she had known since he was four years old. Danny Desai had never been anything less than polite, cordial and delightfully respectful as a little boy. She used to pay him ten dollars a week to rake her leaves and mow her lawn. He'd always been punctual and steadfast in that task. Most evenings when she return home late and exhausted from work, she wouldn't be surprised to find him, Lacey and Jo sprawled out across the living room either playing a game, doing homework or watching television together.

The boy had practically become a member of her own family. She'd been especially grateful for him because he managed to keep Lacey distracted while she focused on making advances at work. Danny had eaten dinner with them and, before he and Lacey got too old for sleepovers, he'd often spent the night under their roof, especially during those times when Vik and Karen were having their fights and Tara Desai's tolerance for her nephew was at an all time low. Judy Porter never had any absolute proof and certainly Danny had never confirmed it but she had always suspected that Tara Desai might have been physically abusive towards him. It was true that Danny had been a rambunctious little boy and scrapes and tumbles were bound to happen but...there had been quite a few times when his bruises weren't so easily explained away.

Judy had always regretted her decision not to report her reservations about what was going on in the Desai home. Perhaps, if she had, Tara Desai might not have been murdered. Back then, however, she had mollified herself with the excuse that it was a family matter and none of her business. Surely, if Tara Desai was being physical with her nephew, his father and mother would put a stop to it. Besides that, Tara was disabled. How much harm could she really do?

Those had been among her many excuses back in the day. Judy could admit in hindsight that she had deliberately closed her eyes to the truth. She'd had so much to contend with pertaining to her career and crumbling marriage that she hadn't _wanted_ to see any problems beyond her own. She couldn't deal with the Desai family's dysfunction when her own family was falling apart.

In a twist of irony, however, now their problems were _her_ problems because everything that was affecting Danny was affecting her Lacey also. Her daughter put up a marvelous front. If there was anything Lacey had perfected in her sixteen years of life, it was the ability to remain poised under pressure. With a career driven mother and an absentee father, Judy supposed it was a quality that had been born out of necessity for her daughter. Consequently, Lacey had become an expert at covering over her problems and, when she couldn't cover them, she ran. Judy suspected that was the very reasons she was beginning to break apart at the seams now...because, for the first time in her life, Lacey had nowhere to run.

And perhaps that was yet another way Judy had failed because she had enabled Lacey for quite some time in that regard. It seemed an easier thing to do, especially when she was so preoccupied with own turmoil. When Lacey had insisted on going away to summer camp during Danny's sentencing rather than staying and seeing a therapist like her father had wanted, Judy had supported her. When Judy and Sam had officially separated, Judy happily agreed to allow Lacey and Clara to visit her older sister in Maryland rather than remaining in Green Grove because Judy had not been able to handle work, being a mom and navigating through her divorce all at the same time.

For every single crisis Lacey had faced in her life, Judy had, not only allowed her daughter to avoid her problems, but had aided her in doing it because allowing Lacey to avoid her issues meant that Judy could avoid hers as well. Now, at sixteen years old, Lacey had no real coping skills when dealing with crisis. She either ran or she shut down. Judy realized the fault for that lay directly at her feet.

She feared what was brewing beneath her daughter's well maintained veneer of calm. Eventually, all that pent up emotion was bound to bubble to the surface. Lacey was a virtual powder keg of repressed anger and frustration and, unfortunately, Danny Desai was the spark. It would be only a matter of time before Lacey exploded and Judy dreaded the fallout. She wasn't sure if anyone of them were ready.

Hoping to circumvent what she saw as an unavoidable conclusion, Judy did her best to coax her daughter into sharing her feelings. "I know you've had a hard time getting used to him being back again," Judy acknowledged softly, "Tell me what I can do."

"I need to regain some sense of control," Lacey replied, "I...I was thinking that maybe I could take a leave of absence from school for a while...just so I can get a little perspective."

Judy wasn't completely surprised by the request but she recognized that she needed to react differently from how she had in the past...for Lacey's sake and for her own. "I suppose I could look into a few programs for home-schooling," she considered, "I could ask my supervisor if I could lighten my case load at work so I can have more time here with you."

"You don't have to do that, Mom," Lacey protested with a grimace, "I know how much your career means to you. I'm not expecting you to take time off. Besides, I don't want to be home-schooled. It would completely kill what's left of my social life. I was thinking more like a short break. Six weeks tops. With all the reporters crawling around again and all the bad memories that are being stirred up, I think I could qualify for a temporary student leave. I could go stay with Aunt Lola like I did before...just until everything starts to calm down here."

"Maybe that's not such a good idea this time, honey."

"I already spoke to Aunt Lo if that's what you're worried about," Lacey reassured her, "She's cool with it. She said that she'd love to have me come stay for a couple of weeks. She'll even buy my plane ticket. You just need to make the formal request with the school so I can go."

Judy ducked her head, taking in a deep breath to prepare herself for Lacey's understandable disappointment and outrage when she said, "I'm not going to do that, Lacey."

Lacey immediately tugged her hand from her mother's grasp, her brows knit together in a bewildered scowl. "What? I don't understand. What do you mean you're not going to do it? Why?"

"This is a difficult period for our family," Judy considered, "This is not the time for us to go off in different directions. I think it would be a good idea if we all stuck together and supported one another."

Predictably, Lacey recoiled at the suggestion. "Since when?"

"Since now," Judy declared with growing conviction, "You, Clara and I should stand as a unit. That's what family should be, Lacey. We hold each other up."

"Oh, so now you're suddenly about us being a family and sticking together?" Lacey snapped, "Where was all this conviction when Dad was still around? _Now_ you want to be an involved parent...after Dad is long gone and I've practically raised myself? Real great timing there, Mom!"

"I will be the first to admit that I've failed you, Lacey, in so many ways that I have lost count, but... I am trying to do things better than I did in the past," Judy replied with all the calm she could muster, "I want _us_ to be better. Our family is having a very hard time right now and I think-,"

"- _Our family_ is not having a hard time, Mom!" she bit out wrathfully, surging to her feet with clenched fists, " _I'm_ having a hard time! _I'm_ the one who has to face him in school every day! _Me!_ You have no idea what it's like for me! So please don't act like we're suffering through this together because we're not!"

"Lacey, that's enough!"

Belatedly realizing that she was practically screaming in her mother's face right then, Lacey closed her eyes briefly and sucked in a deep breath in an attempt to reign in her bubbling resentment. "Are you going to let me go to Aunt Lo's or not?" she asked softly.

Judy squared her shoulders. "I'm not."

It took every ounce of self-control Lacey possessed not to throw a full blown tantrum. She felt as if her last chance at maintaining her sanity had just slipped through her fingers. Recognizing the futility in throwing a fit, Lacey shut down instead. "Fine. Then I guess we don't have anything else to say to each other."

"Lacey, don't be this way."

"I need to get ready for Regina's party. Archie will be here to pick me up any minute."

Her mother emitted a weary sigh. "Do you think we could talk about this later...maybe when you get home tonight?"

"It'll probably be late. You know how Regina's things can go."

"Tomorrow then?" Judy ventured hopefully. Lacey shrugged, not refusing and not agreeing either. Finally conceding defeat, Judy leaned over to kiss Lacey's temple and was disheartened when Lacey flinched away with a tight grimace. "I'm trying to be a better mother to you, Lacey," she whispered despondently, "Maybe one day you'll understand that."

Lacey rolled her eyes in response to that, waiting until her mother was gone before she hopped off the bed to close and lock the door behind her. She was thwarted from her intentions when her little sister abruptly popped into the threshold of her doorway. She leveled Lacey with a scowl heavy in admonishment and disappointment.

At twelve and a half years old, Clara Porter was caught in that awkward stage between blossoming young woman and inexperienced adolescence. Her body had already started developing its womanly curves, signaling her growth into maturity but her face, with its wide set brown eyes, pouting mouth and rounded cheeks, still maintained a gamin quality indicative of her youth. As a result, though Clara made quite a production of acting like a grown-up, it was difficult for Lacey to take her seriously, not when all she could see was the seven-year old face of her baby sister staring back at her...which accounted for her impatient huff when she discerned Clara's clear intention to give Lacey a piece of her mind.

"What do you want, Clare?" she sighed wearily.

"You can be a real bitch sometimes, do you know that?" she charged Lacey in an accusing tone, "Why do you have to be so hard on Mom? She's trying to help you!"

"Wow, say how you really feel, why don't you?"

"I just don't get why you have to be so mean to her all the time! It's annoying."

"Well, maybe you wouldn't be so annoyed if you tried minding your own business for once instead of eavesdropping outside of my room all of the time!" Lacey retorted.

"That doesn't change the fact that you're being unfair to Mom!"

" _I'm_ being unfair?" Lacey scoffed, "You don't have the slightest clue what you're talking about. This situation is way over your head. You're just a kid, Clare! You don't get it."

"I'm not a kid! I'm almost thirteen and I get 'it' just fine! I know way more than you think I do, Lacey."

"Right. Because at _twelve_ you've lived such a full life!"

"I know enough to figure out that you're not really mad at Mom right now," Clara theorized in a knowing tone, "You're just taking your frustration out on her! The person you're really mad at is yourself!"

"Is that so?" Lacey challenged, crossing her arms, "And why is that, little Buddha? Please...dazzle me with your abundant wisdom."

"You're mad because you want to be friends with Danny again," Clara charged softly, stunning her older sister into arrested silence with her unreserved perceptiveness, "You really miss him, Lacey...and, for some stupid reason I can't understand, you hate yourself for it." Disarmed emotionally, Lacey wilted into the doorframe, unable to deny Clara's allegation, not only because she lacked a ready rebuttal, but also because her throat was suddenly too raw with unshed tears to even voice one.

Noting the tears that glistened in her older sister's eyes, Clara softened her harsh tone. "It's okay, Lacey. It _really_ is. It's okay if you miss him. It's okay if you forgive him."

"Forgive him? He _killed_ someone, Clara. I don't even know who he is anymore."

"So find out. I bet if you talked to him again you wouldn't feel so bad."

Lacey compressed her lips to stifle the sobbing bark of laughter that threatened to bubble from her lips. "It's not that simple."

Clara pursed her lips in disagreement with that statement. "You want to know what I remember most about Danny?" she asked with a fond smile, "He was always nice to me. He used to bring me back candy whenever you guys went to the movies without me. It's like he didn't want me to feel left out or forgotten. I _never_ felt forgotten with him."

"He didn't want you to feel left out," Lacey confirmed with a small smile, "It used to annoy me so much when he did that because I thought he was being a suck up, you know...trying to impress Mom and Dad but that was all Danny. He actually _liked_ having you tag around with us. He had the worst case of 'only child' syndrome I've ever seen."

"I'm not complaining. I could have done way worse for a big brother. Danny was pretty awesome. He's the one who taught me how to roller skate and play soccer. I would have never made the team without him." Clara's smiling expression faltered a bit when she added, "You're wrong about what you said to Mom. You are _not_ the only one having a hard time, Lacey."

"I'm sorry. That was insensitive. I shouldn't have said that."

"I know he was your friend but, he was _my_ friend too. I think about him a lot."

"So do I," Lacey confessed in an unguarded moment.

"So then why don't you do something about it? Talk to him. Try to fix it. What have you got to lose?" Clara lifted her shoulders in a dismissive shrug before leveling her sister with a pointed look. "But what do I know? I'm just a kid."

"More like a pain in my neck," Lacey replied with more affection than aggravation. She sobered a bit and leaned forward to draw her sister into an impulsive embrace. "Thanks for calling me on my crap, Clare. Sorry for being such a brat earlier."

Clara hugged her back, the earlier antagonism between them forgotten. "Don't apologize to me. Apologize to Mom," Clara said when she pulled back, "I know she isn't perfect, Lacey, but...at least _she's_ the one who actually stuck around."

After Clara had gone, Lacey sat back down on her bed to contemplate, not only her discussion with Clara about Danny but also the fight she'd had with her mother as well. While Clara had been right in her accusation that Judy was bearing the brunt of Lacey's frustration right then, it wasn't necessarily the only reason for the friction between her and Judy. The truth of the matter was that Lacey had plenty of reasons to resent her mother. Judy Porter had never been what one would describe as an involved parent. She had never had any issues with leaving Lacey and Clara to their own devices while she pursued her own interests. Family, it seemed, was something Judy had always taken for granted...until it began falling apart.

Now she wanted to make amends and become closer but, for Lacey, her efforts were one divorce and several years of childhood trauma too late. Lacey had survived some of the most horrific years of her entire life without any real support from her mother. As a result, she found it rather impossible to lean on Judy for anything now.

It was different for Clara. She craved the stability. After experiencing so much upheaval at such a young age, she readily accepted their mother's attempts to reassert her presence in their lives. She welcomed it. Lacey, on the other hand, resented what she viewed as Judy's efforts to force herself on her eldest daughter. Her constant pushing only managed to stir up emotions that Lacey had fought to keep at bay for years. She wasn't prepared to deal with the years of rage and resentment that had been steadily building inside of her since before her parents' divorce. The feelings were almost too much to process.

She was still grappling with her thoughts when her cell phone buzzed to life on the nightstand next to her bed. When she saw Archie's name and phone number illuminated on the caller i.d. screen she immediately answered the call. "Hey babe," she chirped with forced cheerfulness, "Are you on your way?"

"Actually, I'm not going to make it tonight, babe," Archie informed her reluctantly.

"What do you mean? You're supposed to pick me up in half an hour." She couldn't help but panic a little because, after the fight she'd just had with her mother, there was no way she wanted to linger at home tonight. She needed a breather. "You're not coming?" she pressed Archie in disbelief.

"It can't be helped. I'm sorry. It's one of those last minute things with Coach again."

"You have practice _tonight_?"

"I wish I didn't. I'd rather be with you."

"Can't you get out of it?" Lacey wheedled.

"I can't. I'm captain, remember? We have a game tomorrow and Coach wants us to be in top form. It wouldn't look good if I ditched."

"So you're really going to make me go to Regina's party alone?"

"I know it sucks." He paused, allowing for Lacey's disappointed grunt before he continued, "Listen, it was probably for the best anyway. You know me and Regina don't mix. I'm not comfortable around her. She would have been aggravating me all night."

"Yeah, but you weren't going to spend time with Regina," Lacey pointed out to him petulantly, "You were going to spend time with _me_."

"We can still do that. There's no reason we can't hang out after I'm finished up. I still want to see you. Maybe I could pick you up from the party and we could grab some dinner, maybe see a movie or _not_ see a movie. _Or_ we could just find someplace to be alone together."

The exaggerated emphasis he placed on the word "alone" did not escape Lacey's notice. She didn't have to ask what Archie meant. It wasn't the first time he had implied that he was interested in taking their relationship to the next level. But Lacey had always shown a fair amount of hesitancy in the past to consummate their relationship, mostly because she wanted it to feel special when she finally lost her virginity. It had to be on _her_ terms and no one else's. She wasn't interested in treating sexual intimacy like a rite of passage as most of her friends had done. It needed to _mean_ something. Her conviction on the matter had left Archie frustrated with her on more than one occasion.

However, now that they had been dating exclusively for nearly ten months, Lacey didn't really have a valid excuse for putting him off anymore and yet...she continued to hesitate. She didn't even fully understand her reasons. Archie was seemingly all the things she wanted in a guy, the perfect boyfriend. Yet, despite his perfection, Lacey couldn't shake the innate sense that something was lacking. All she really knew was that she was waiting for _something_ and, as wonderful as her boyfriend could be, deep down in her gut Lacey suspected that something was _not_ Archie Yates.

"Archie, I don't know it that's such a good idea."

"What's not a good idea?" he asked, his tone already bordering on accusing irritation, "Hanging out later or being alone together?"

"You know I don't mind spending time with you," Lacey rushed out in reassurance, "I want to, but... I just...I don't want you to get frustrated with me because..."

"...because you act like sleeping with me is the last thing you want," he finished curtly.

"No. That's not what it is. I'm not ready. That's all."

"So you've been saying for most of the time we've been together. Ten months isn't enough time for you to be ready?"

Lacey grimaced into the phone. "I didn't realize I was on a time table," she snapped frostily.

"Well, if there's a time table, it's the one you set up," he retorted, "I'm just going along on your say so here."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means that I don't mind waiting but I'd like to know exactly _why_ I am!" he grated, "Is this thing between us real or not? Nothing happens in our relationship unless it's on your say so, Lacey, and I'm sick of it!"

"That is not true!"

"We make out when you say. When spend time together when you say. We go out on dates where you say. You treat me like a freaking afterthought...like you're putting up with me or something and I don't get it! Why are you even with me, Lacey?" he charged bitterly, "You obviously don't think our relationship is going anywhere so why are you even wasting your time?"

"You're getting all of this because I won't _sleep with you_?" she gasped incredulously.

"Oh, don't act like such a martyr! You run hot and cold and you know it! I want to be close to you! I want to show you how much I care about you! I don't think that's a crime! You say you want us to be together but then you don't want to act like an actual girlfriend!"

"So what are you saying? The only way I can be an 'actual girlfriend' is if we have sex?"

"How about, at least, acting like you want to be with me the way I want to be with you?" he cried.

"I do!"

He snorted a disbelieving laugh at that. "Whatever, Lacey! Do you know how many girls would love to have a shot at me? I could have any one of them, Lacey, but I chose to be with _you_. I want to be with _you_. Maybe you should figure out what _you_ want."

"I don't know why you'd bother when I'm obviously such a failure as a girlfriend in your eyes," Lacey replied with dripping sarcasm, "Maybe you'd be better off giving one of those other girls a shot."

"You know what? Screw you! Maybe I'll do that!"

Lacey was so stunned by his infuriated rejoinder that it took her several seconds to realize he'd disconnected the call.


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

Almost the instant she and Danny ducked beyond Regina Crane's ornate front door into her spacious foyer, Jo Masterson was overcome with the need to do an immediate about face. She and Danny were practically swallowed by the swell of writhing bodies that greeted them. For once, not everything came to an abrupt grinding halt with Danny's entrance. The partygoers were much too preoccupied with partying to give either of them a second thought. Jo continued to feel self-conscious, however.

She pressed herself close against the door, unable to mask her reactive grimace of distaste as she was bumped and jostled by one sweaty body after another. She rolled a displeased look up at Danny. "Yeah, I can tell this is going to be a blast," she deadpanned over the thumping cacophony of music.

Danny grinned at her irreverently. "Look at the bright side, at least we're kinda blending in for the moment."

"If you say so," she mumbled and then she said in a louder voice, "I still wish I could have convinced Rico to come with us."

"I don't really know him all that well, Jo, but this doesn't really seem like his scene."

Jo couldn't argue with Danny's assertion on that. Up until yesterday, it hadn't been _her_ scene either. And, if she wasn't really all that enthused about attending, she'd really had a snowball's chance of convincing Rico to come and she knew that before she asked him. She could still recall the incredulous way his mouth had fallen open when she invited him to attend Regina's party with her and Danny. After he had spent ten minutes ranting at her about her ill advised decision to go anywhere at all with Danny Desai, he then launched into a lengthy lecture that listed every possible reason why an unsupervised party full of drunk, teenage attendees _plus_ Regina Crane would lead to disaster. There had never been a prayer of him saying "yes." Then again, once upon a time, there wouldn't have been a prayer of _her_ saying "yes" either.

He was doing it to her again. Danny Desai had a smooth, unassuming way of convincing her to buck her better judgment and do things she wouldn't normally do. Then again, not much had changed since they were kids. He'd possessed that same particular talent back then as well.

Still, hanging out with him was not entirely the way it used to be. He had his periods of brooding silence every so often which was a stark contrast from the often loquacious child he had been. Very often when the conversation turned towards uncomfortable subject matter, he tended to avoid and evade. He also didn't volunteer much of anything personal about himself anymore. It was as if he intentionally wanted to remain an enigma to her. That was an especially difficult realization for Jo because she could still remember a time when Danny Desai had told her _everything_. Well, not quite everything, Jo amended mentally. He'd never ever indicated to her any desire to kill his aunt. _That_ had come as a complete shock and it continued to reverberate with her until that day.

Which was yet another reason she wished Rico had come with them. She needed him to serve as a buffer. No matter how harmless and unassuming Danny appeared to be now, the enormous, trumpeting elephant remained in the room. Danny Desai was very capable of taking another person's life. He had _killed_ someone in cold blood and he had done so when he was _supposedly_ a gentle hearted 11 year old boy. Jo didn't want to imagine what he was capable of as a sixteen year old ex-convict. She shuddered at the thought.

"Gah, I _really_ wish Rico had come with us," she muttered again. When she caught sight of Danny's speculative look, she added in a weak stammer, "B-Because you know, safety in numbers."

Danny favored her with a small, knowing smile that was tinged with regret. "You don't have to be tense around me. I'm not going to hurt you, Jo. I could never do that."

Jo slumped forward a little, not bothering to deny his tacit charge. She tapped the spot just above her heart. "I know that here, Danny. I honestly do," she whispered before lifted her fingers to her temple, "I'm having trouble getting it here though."

"I get it," he told her, "I don't want you to feel bad or obligated to stay here with me if you don't want to, Jo. You can bail and go hang with Rico tonight. I won't hold it against you."

"I don't think Rico is much up for my company at the moment," she replied vaguely.

"Why not? Are you in the doghouse?" Danny surmised astutely.

"Oh yeah. I'm on his _list_. That's a direct quote."

"Is there...a thing between you two?"

Jo guffawed at the mere idea. "A thing? Between me and Rico? No. Not at all. He's my friend. He's my rock. He's...he's..." Jo frowned to herself when she realized she couldn't complete the phrase "he's like my brother" with any relative ease...because he wasn't. Rico was many things to her and shared many things with her but not once in their two year friendship had she ever thought of him like a brother. Consequently, Jo settled with a simple, "He's not really my type."

"Okay. I'm was only wondering. It's just when you said you were on his list..."

"We do carry ourselves like an old married couple, don't we?"

"I didn't really want to say anything."

"Oy vey."

Danny nudged her playfully with his shoulder. "At least you have company on that list of his. I bet my name is at the top of it. I do get the distinct impression that Rico doesn't like me much."

"It's not you really," Jo reassured him, "It's what you represent."

He appraised her with questioning, sideways glance. "And what's that?"

"Anarchy. He doesn't dislike you so much as he fears you and the chaos that unfortunately follows you like an oppressive cloak of death."

Danny rolled his eyes in laughing chagrin. "Well, when you put it that way, that makes it _so_ much better..."

As he and Jo shuffled their way deeper and deeper into the throng of heaving guests it was an inevitable conclusion that his presence would eventually become noticed by the masses. Thankfully, the party didn't come to a complete halt but Danny was acutely aware of the growing whispers and pointing and the circulating warnings that "Socio" was in attendance. Danny grew understandably tense but he was more concerned about the scrutiny Jo was receiving at the moment than for himself. As if she sensed that somehow, Jo reached down between them and gave his fingers a brief, but reassuring squeeze. He offered her a grateful smile, relieved and elated when she tentatively returned it.

That was the very instant Regina Crane and Lacey Porter became aware of their presence. Lacey paused mid-gyration, momentarily struck with an undeniable sense of envy and longing when she looked up and saw Danny and Jo exchanging a secret smile that was reminiscent of the ones they had shared as children. She couldn't help but feel a little jealous over how easily Jo had fallen back into her friendship with Danny, as if he'd never served a five year prison sentence for murder at all. It harkened back to their childhood, when Jo had always been the impulsive one who leapt first and looked later while Lacey had to contemplate every possible angle before she made a move. Given everything that had transpired earlier that day, witnessing Jo and Danny's growing closeness only served to further aggravate Lacey's already raw nerves.

It wasn't so very different from how she'd often felt when they were kids. She hadn't been so much left out of Danny and Jo's schemes as she had been somehow always designated as the "voice of reason" aka "the wet blanket" of their little trio. Jo was forever griping at her to loosen up and have fun. She'd even labeled Lacey with the rather appropriate but extremely annoying nickname "straight-Lace." It used to drive Lacey crazy whenever Jo called her that because she knew Jo viewed her natural tendency towards caution as a fault and not an asset.

Danny, on the other hand, had been the opposite. He'd always praised Lacey for being the only one between the three of them with the ability to keep a level head. In fact, he had even managed to make her stop hating that wretched nickname. After some time, he dropped the "straight" part and simply started referring to her affectionately as "Lace." What had started out as something that had irritated her beyond belief quickly became something she secretly craved to hear. Lacey bit back a smile at the memory. Danny always did have an uncanny knack for turning the bad into good.

She was still musing fondly over that memory when Regina leaned over to nudge her. "Come on," she urged with a feline smile, "Your boy is here. Let's go over and say hello."

"Ugh, Regina!" Lacey grunted in mild disgust, "Can you please not throw yourself at him like you did at lunch the other day? It was embarrassing and a little shameless."

Regina grinned, not the least bit quelled by Lacey's admonishment. "Good," she chirped as she snagged hold of Lacey's arm and began dragging her over in Danny and Jo's direction, "Then that means I'm doing it right."

Danny and Jo were in the midst of searching for a way to better blend in with their surroundings when Regina and Lacey suddenly emerged from the crowd. The awkwardness of the encounter was almost immediately drowned in the thick tension that swelled between Danny and Lacey. His intently avid stare was drawn to Lacey while she anxiously averted her gaze elsewhere. Jo noted the crackling exchange between them with an exasperated eye roll while Regina completely ignored their obvious discomfiture.

"Hey, Lace," Danny greeted in that low, husky tone that was unique to only him, "It's good to see you."

Lacey never made eye contact when she mumbled in reply, "Hey, Danny."

Not one to be outdone or ignored, Regina smoothly inserted herself between Lacey and Danny, effectively blocking Lacey from his view. "I'm here too," she sang out needlessly.

Danny had no choice but to meet her eyes. "Hello again, Regina," he said politely, "Thank you for inviting me."

"Socio, oh Socio...I'm so glad you could make it," she purred, "Now it's _really_ a party."

He emitted a short, bark of laughter. "I'm not so sure I should be responding to that nickname. I don't want to encourage you."

"Too late. You already have." Regina sidled up against him, her body brushing against his seductively as she leaned in close to his ear. "And I'll call you whatever you like, lover... _in bed_."

Though Jo had been unable to hear exactly what Regina had whispered in his ear, if way Danny's eyes suddenly flared wide and the nervous step he took back was any indication, it was something especially inappropriate. Jo gagged. Lacey, on the other hand, responded with terse affront, biting out sharply before she could stop herself, "God, Regina, could you be more classless? You're practically dry humping him in the middle of the room!"

Regina cut her a narrowed glower. "Chill, Lacey. Maybe you should try some 'dry humping' of your own. You wouldn't be so uptight."

Lacey wanted to slap her. When she had arrived early at Regina's before the party began and miserably confided in her friend about the fight she'd had with Archie earlier that evening, Regina had been surprisingly supportive and understanding. She hadn't treated Lacey with impatience or indifference. She hadn't even taken any verbal jabs at her for "being stupid and letting a good one get away." Instead, she had simply listened while Lacey vented. Given that earlier regard, Lacey was understandably caught off guard by Regina's vitriolic retort.

"I can't believe you just said that," she uttered in a stunned breath.

"Don't get all wounded," Regina sighed, "I'm just saying that maybe you should focus more on what you're doing or _not doing_ with Archie and less on what I'm doing with Socio here. You wouldn't have nearly as many problems."

Though Danny maintained an outward facade of apathy, the moment Lacey's boyfriend was mentioned he was at once attentive. His curiosity was definitely peaked by the furious, hissing exchange between Lacey and Regina. "Archie, huh? That's the boyfriend, right?" Neither Lacey nor Jo were fooled by his casual demeanor. While the brunette glared at him in obvious disgruntlement, the blonde could only shake her head in long-suffering dismay.

As per usual, Regina remained painfully unaware. She smirked at Danny. "That's right, Socio! You get a gold star! Have you met Archie?"

Lacey managed to suppress her loud, resigned groan to that question. Jo, on the other hand, didn't quite succeed. She knew as far as Danny's tormenters went, Archie Yates led the pack. Given that, she didn't see the benefit of Danny letting himself be drawn into a back and forth about him with Regina Crane. However, judging by the pointed look Danny gave her after she groaned, he didn't necessarily agree with her.

He turned back to Regina and answered, "Yeah, I'm acquainted with Archie. We have a few classes together." He surveyed a fidgeting Lacey from beneath his lashes. "That's a real prize you picked there, Lace."

Regina missed the heavy sarcasm tempering his words. "That's what I've been telling her! Then you already know that he's captain of the soccer team and a grade A stud-muffin." She appraised Danny with a playful once-over. "But you could _so_ out-stud him...you know, in a hypothetical stud-off."

The muscle in Danny's jaw ticked ominously. "Thanks."

Sensing an impending blowup and hoping to avert it, Jo began a round of affected coughing in an effort to diffuse the mounting tension. "Um...could I maybe have some water?" she asked Regina desperately, "My throat is so dry." Unfortunately, she was largely ignored by Regina and Danny as well.

Danny tossed angled a look around the room before his eyes landed on Lacey once more. "So...where is Prince Charming? He here right now?"

"No," she mumbled tightly, "He had practice tonight and couldn't make it."

"Oh...that's a shame."

Regina reached out to trace the buttons on his jacket. "That's really a matter of perspective," she whispered, "You more than make up for his absence, Socio."

Pushed past the limits of her waning patience, Lacey snapped, "God, Regina, can you give the whole Socio thing a rest already? He has a freaking name!"

"Hey, you're the one who started it!" Regina retorted.

Lacey wanted to sink through the floor and that was _before_ both Jo and Danny cut sharpened looks in her direction. She could hardly bear to look at either of them. Danny, for his part, was unable to hide his initial flash of hurt. Jo, however, took immediate refuge in her anger.

"Wow, Lacey," she bit out harshly, "So you're the one who started that whole thing? That's so classy of you."

"It's okay, Jo," Danny murmured, forcing a smile that clearly did not meet his eyes, "Socio. It's kind of catchy actually."

Inundated with remorse, Lacey was still struggling to voice her apology when Jo and Danny excused themselves and were quickly swallowed up by the crowd. She rounded on Regina with a seething glower. "Why did you do that?"

Regina blinked at her with obtuse impatience. "Do what?"

"You were rude and obnoxious and you went out of your way to make him feel uncomfortable!"

"Why do you even care?" Regina retorted, "You were the one who said he doesn't mean anything to you! Now, all of a sudden, you're offended by the way he's being treated? Give me a break!"

Lacey snapped her mouth shut, abruptly deciding against engaging in the verbal tug of war with Regina mostly because she lacked a valid argument. Nothing Regina had said was untrue and, for Lacey, that was the hardest pill to swallow. "Forget it. There's no point in talking about it," she said, sidling around the other girl, "I'm going to have a drink."

"Make it _two_!" Regina called after her cattily, "You need it! And why don't you pull the stick out of your ass while you're at it?"

When Lacey stomped over to the refreshment table Sarita was already there helping herself to chips, dip and beer. She took one look at Lacey's stormy expression and expelled a weary sigh. "Okay, what has Reg done now?"

"She's an insensitive, self-centered brat and I'm over dealing with her!"

"Trouble in paradise?" Sarita queried.

"Do you know that she had the nerve to throw that whole Archie thing back in my face? I can't believe I thought I could confide in her!"

"Yeah, that _was_ kinda dumb."

"Thanks a lot, Sarita."

"Are you really surprised? Come on, you're dating the most popular boy in school! Regina's been after you to 'hit that' for almost six months. She thinks you're being an idiot for waiting as you have. Hell, even _I'm_ starting to wonder what the hold up is."

"Forgive me for wanting to lose _my_ virginity on _my_ own timetable, Sarita," Lacey snapped, "When I'm ready then I'll do it, okay!"

Sarita threw up her hands. "Damn...okay... You don't have to bite my head off!"

Across the room, Danny nursed his beer and pretended not to be engrossed in the animated conversation Lacey was currently having with Sarita Henson. He could feel Jo's pitying gaze on him the entire time, however. Therefore, he wasn't surprised when she finally reached over to tug his sleeve and asked, "Are you okay?"

He flicked her with a shuttered look. "Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"Because Lacey made up that hateful nickname and now that's what everyone in school is calling you," Jo replied tightly, "It's _her_ fault you're being tormented every single day."

"No, it's not," he refuted softly, "It's _my_ fault. I did what I did and now I gotta live with that. It was my decision and these are the consequences."

"It's still not fair."

"Are you going to act like you haven't had those exact same thoughts about me before?" Danny challenged softly, "That you haven't wondered if what they say about me is true...that I don't have a conscience, that I'm a sociopath?" Jo's righteous indignation faltered with the quiet inquiry because she was unable to deny it. She flushed guiltily. "Jo, it's okay," he reassured her, "I screwed up with you and I screwed up with Lacey. I know that it's gonna take some time to fix that but... _I'm_ going to fix it. There's nothing more important to me."

Jo might have given into the overwhelming impulse to hug him right then and there if one of their class mates, a film geek by the name of Tyler Louis, hadn't chosen that precise moment to approach them. Both Jo and Danny stared at him in wary expectation but it was Jo who was the first to speak. "Can we help you with something?" she asked rather rudely.

"I'm Tyler. I just thought you might want to dance with me," Tyler said. He turned to regard Danny with brows raised in question. "If that's okay with you, bro."

Danny compressed his lips to keep from laughing outright, especially when Jo angled a look up at him that clearly said, "Who the heck is this guy?" She wasn't the least bit interested in dancing with the guy and Danny knew it. But, that was precisely the reason he thought she should. Jo needed to come out of her shell. As if she sensed his unspoken intention, Jo began surreptitiously shaking her head. Danny ignored her not so subtle order to cease and desist.

"Um...you don't really need my permission but yeah...sure," he agreed to Jo's mortified chagrin. He favored her with a cheeky grin. "Get out there and shake a leg, Jo."

After leveling Danny with a killing glare and uttering with absolute conviction, "I hate you," she turned to Tyler and declared implacably, "Sorry. I don't dance."

"Well, can I get you a drink?" Tyler offered instead.

"I don't drink either."

"Well, what do you do?"

Jo squinted at him. "Are you sure you have the right girl?"

"You're Jo Masterson. You make the honor roll every report card period." He plucked at her jacket in a gesture that was meant to be confident and cocky but only made Jo want to snap off every single one of his fingers. "You're obviously into camouflage and you hang out with that kid who is captain of the Mathletes." He concluded with a crooked smile. "So yeah, I'm pretty sure I have the right girl."

Jo threw a desperate glance at Danny but he merely shrugged. "Don't look at me. I think you should dance with him." She hissed his name. "What?" he bleated in feigned innocence, nudging her towards Tyler, "Don't be a wall flower, Jo. Get out of your own way and have some fun."

She hitched her thumb towards Tyler. "With this guy?"

Tyler chose that moment to speak in his own defense. "I'm really not that bad when you get to know me better."

Danny bobbed his head in an amused nod. "You see that, Jo? He vouches for himself."

"I would really like to kick you somewhere vital right now but I don't want to ruin any future prospects you might have for children."

"My vital parts thank you," he laughed, "But seriously...go have fun. You can't lurk over here in the corner with me all night. That wasn't why I suggested bringing you here."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine," he told her, "Go dance."

After one last look of uncertainty, Jo turned back to face Tyler Louis with a militant expression. "Okay, you get one dance," she relented, "But if you so much as _touch_ me in the wrong way, I'm going to kick you so hard in the junk your future grandkids will feel it!" Danny kept his laughing smile in place long enough to watch Jo be pulled out onto the dance floor before he sobered and resumed nursing his beer in brooding silence.

On the other side of the room, Lacey was brooding as well. She made a half-hearted attempt to listen to Sarita babble about the latest trends in fashion but her mind was elsewhere. Her day had been nothing short of dreadful. First, she had the fight with her mother, then the friction with Clara right after. She still wasn't completely certain if she and Archie had broken up and then Regina had to go and prove that she would always, _always_ be the Queen Bitch.

But nothing Lacey had experienced thus far had made her feel nearly as awful as the look on Danny's face when he realized _she_ was the reason he was being bullied at school regularly. She wanted to cry just thinking about it. She couldn't imagine what he and Jo must be saying about her right then, what they must have _thought_ of her. She cared about their opinion more than she wanted to admit. The guilt and self-hatred she felt over possibly having alienated them was almost too much to bear. Lacey knew she needed to get out of there.

"I think I'm going to take off early," she said, interrupting Sarita mid-sentence, "I'm really not in the mood to party tonight."

"You're really going to go home and sulk?" Sarita admonished in clear reprimand, "Could you be more pathetic, Lacey?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

Whatever Sarita had in mind for a suggestion was forgotten a millisecond later. "Don't look now," she warned in a dire tone, "but the freak is staring at you _again_."

Lacey immediately darted a furtive glance over towards where Danny was standing, refusing to think too deeply on how she managed to locate him with such ease. Sure enough, he was staring at her again just as Sarita charged. However, as soon as Lacey caught him in the act of doing so, Danny quickly averted his eyes and pretended to be preoccupied with watching Jo dance with Tyler Louis instead. Even with that minimal eye contact, however, a curious flutter took up residence in the pit of Lacey's stomach that she recognized immediately as attraction. There wasn't any use in denying the truth to herself any longer...she _liked_ having Danny Desai's undivided attention whether she wanted to admit it out loud or not.

"Ugh," Sarita grumbled in annoyance, "Why does he have to be so freaking creepy all the time?"

"He's not creepy," Lacey protested, "There's just...there's a lot of history between us."

"Well, you should probably know that your 'history' is on his way over here right now."

Lacey barely had time to process that warning before Danny had closed the distance between them. She forced herself to meet his eyes. "What do you want?"

"Do you think we could go somewhere and talk?" he asked softly. His dark eyes became limpid and imploring when he added, "Please. I hate that it's like this between us."

"Hey, Freak!" Sarita interrupted coldly, "Are you trying to add 'stalker' to your criminal record?"

Danny appraised her curious look. "I know you," he said, "You're Sarita. Sarita Henson, right? We had grades 2 through 6 together. You were the one with the facial hair problem in fifth grade."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sarita scoffed, "Weren't you too busy being arrested for murder in fifth grade?"

"I was arrested in the sixth grade," Danny corrected smoothly, "And I'm sure it was you. I remember you had to leave school for a week to have some sort of chemical-laser-electrode procedure done that they only approved in Germany or something. Looks like it worked out okay...though you can still see the faint outline of a moustache..."

Sarita glared at him and stalked off before he could finish, leaving Lacey to regard Danny in astonished disbelief. "Wow. I see you're winning over the student body one charming remark at a time. Great strategy, by the way."

"Got you to say something to me," he remarked lightly, "Sociopath status notwithstanding."

Her mild aggravation with him briefly suspended, Lacey bit her lip in chagrin. "I'm sorry about that, Danny," she whispered, "It was a mean thing to say and I didn't intend for it to cause you so much grief. I was angry at the time, not that it's an excuse."

"But do you believe it?" he pressed in a soft tone, "That's the only answer I care about."

"I...I don't know," she answered him in stammering honesty, "I don't know who you are anymore."

"Maybe we could change that if you actually _talked_ to me for once, Lace."

"Oh, you don't like being rejected and ignored?" she challenged, "Now you know how I felt when you never answered any of my letters."

Danny absorbed that stinging rebuttal with a deep sigh. "See now we're making progress. I figured that's what it was."

"You figured what?" Lacey demanded tightly.

"That the reason you were being so cold to me was because you were hurt...because I never wrote you back when I away." Her jaw tightened but she made no effort to refute his assumption. "For what it's worth, Lacey, I wasn't trying to ignore you on purpose." She snorted a dubious laugh, causing him to amend his statement. "Okay, okay I _was_ doing it on purpose but not because I didn't care! I always cared. I just didn't know what to say. I still don't know."

"You didn't have to say anything special, Danny. I only wanted to know if you were all right," Lacey confessed in a suffocated tone, "That's all."

Danny leaned in closer to her, his eyes dark and filled with unspoken grief when he whispered in a gruff tone, "Well, I wasn't...and I haven't been ever since. Is that what you wanted to know?"

"I _wanted_ to help you." She surveyed him with a wounded expression. "You hurt me so much," she confessed in a broken tone, "How can I ever trust you again?"

"Maybe you shouldn't trust me," he considered softly, his breath stirring warmly against her face as he spoke, "I can't give you a reason to believe in me again. In fact, you have every reason not to trust me. I'm not a sure thing, but... I need that, Lacey. I need you to believe in me again because you and Jo are everything to me. You're all I have."

"That's not true. You have your mom and she loves you, Danny."

"But _I_ need _you_."

She met his eyes then immediately wished she hadn't. Unprepared for the tears that suddenly burned at the back of her throat or the dizzying effect he had on her with his proximity, Lacey made a desperate attempt to redirect the conversation and collect herself. It was several moments before she trusted herself to speak. She hitched her chin over to where Jo and Tyler were dancing awkwardly.

"I see you and Jo are as thick as ever. She wouldn't even consider coming tonight when _I_ asked her."

"Don't be jealous. You could always join our duo and make it a trio," Danny invited gamely.

"Yeah...that'll happen right after I bake you a dozen cookies as a welcome home treat," Lacey deadpanned.

"I prefer chocolate chip, but I'll settle for oatmeal raisin." Lacey tried to conceal her answering smile and failed miserably. Danny sucked in a stunned breath. "Wow. I can't believe it. Did you...did you actually crack a smile just now, Lacey Porter?"

"Don't let it go to your head."

"I can't help myself. I'm excited. I didn't think I'd ever see them again."

She squinted at him. "See what?"

"Those adorable dimples of yours."

Lacey abruptly became somber with the compliment. Despite his quiet sincerity, she couldn't help but resent how easily he managed to disarm her emotionally. "Don't do that. Don't try to charm me into forgiving you, Danny. I'm not Jo."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that just because you managed to get Jo to follow you around like a puppy dog in under a week that doesn't mean I will too."

"Wow. Puppy dog? That's harsh, Lace."

"Didn't you hear?" Lacey quipped, plucking up a nearby Solo cup and tipping it back for a draught, "I'm a bitch now."

Despite her flippant tone, it was impossible to miss the thread of loneliness and despair in her retort. Danny was puzzled by their inexplicable presence. For all intents and purposes, Lacey had everything she wanted. She was the perfect student with the perfect boyfriend living a perfect life. Her family was well off financially, she was pretty, smart, popular and surrounded by friends. She finally had the sense of normalcy that she had so craved so much following the upheaval in her young life and yet she sounded undeniably lost and unhappy. Danny couldn't help but wonder at the possible reasons. He was distracted from pressing her about it when Regina and Jo suddenly approached them.

Regina pushed Jo forward with an amused smirk. "Guess who I found loitering near the punch bowl," she said.

Danny cast an incredulous look at the Jell-O shot in Jo's hand. "What's this? You're drinking now?"

Lacey had a similar reaction. She surveyed Jo with a concerned frown. "Be careful," she warned, "Those have more alcohol in them than you think."

"Relax, guys. It's one shot," Jo argued with a shrug, "I figured I should at least try it. When in Rome do as the Romans do, right?"

"Famous last words," Danny grunted.

Jo downed her drink and bounced a hopeful look between him and Lacey. "So are you two working it out or what?" she asked tentatively.

Danny and Lacey appraised one another with tentative, sideways glances as she replied, "I don't know if we have anything left to say at this point. The past is done, right?" She regarded Jo with a sorrowful look. "Maybe you were right. Maybe we can't go back."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Danny murmured, "but I can respect your feelings about it. Take care, Lace." He dropped his hand onto Jo's shoulder, steering her away before he lost his grip on his tenuous emotions. "Come on...show me exactly where you found that shot..."

Lacey watched them walk away, feeling bereft and rather hollow inside. She wanted to call them back but she wasn't sure she was ready to deal with the complications that inviting Danny Desai back into her life would bring. Renewing her friendship with Jo seemed an impossibility as well because there would be no way for her to associate with one without dealing with the other. Danny had warned her himself. She had absolutely no reason to trust him. To do so would be disastrous and yet there was a tiny part of her that still wanted to.

She was in the middle of waging that internal battle when Regina turned to her with an expectant look. "Well, that was interesting," she remarked with feigned casualness, "What were you two talking about when we came over. You looked pretty intense."

"Like I would tell you, Regina!"

"Does that mean you're still mad at me or what?" Lacey turned on her heel and walked away without another word. "I guess you are."

For the remainder of the night Lacey took great pains to avoid Regina while simultaneously stifling the constant impulse to approach Danny and Jo. Instead, she spent most of the party ignoring her friends and watching Danny and Jo drink and laugh and talk and then drink some more. Every so often she and Danny would make brief eye contact or Jo would shoot her a look that clearly said, "Would you stop being an ass and get over here already?" But Lacey never made a move to close the physical and emotional gap between them and, Danny and Jo for their part, staunchly maintained their distance. If anyone was going to make an overture towards friendship, it was going to have to be Lacey.

While Lacey tried valiantly to shake off the effects of her last conversation with Danny and Jo, Regina watched from the fringes of her own party while the object of her affections spent most of his time catering to his socially inept friend and, when he thought no one was looking, darting nauseating, lovesick looks in Lacey's direction. What truly infuriated Regina, however, was the discovery that Lacey was directing those very same looks at Danny.

Frustrated and more than a little aggravated that she should feel isolated at her own party, Regina hung back and waited for the perfect opportunity to corner Danny and, simultaneously, keep him isolated from Lacey. The moment came when she managed to convince Tyler Louis to ask a now inebriated Jo Masterson to dance once more time. The instant Tyler led Jo away, Regina made a beeline for an unsuspecting Danny. She sailed past him, deftly catching hold of the lapel of his jacket as she did and dragged him with her into the kitchen.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" he demanded when she shoved him up against the refrigerator and then stepped impossibly close, pressing the entire length of her scantily clad body to his, "You're kind of invading my personal space right now."

"That's the point. Duh." She slipped her hand down between them, her fingers meandering boldly towards his crotch.

Danny quickly caught hold of her hand before she could take her exploration further. "I don't think so. I'm afraid that's a no touching zone."

Regina pouted and bumped her hips against his suggestively. "Aww...and why is that?" she purred into his neck, placing nibbling kisses at the base of his throat, "I bet I could make you feel really good."

To his embarrassment, Danny felt his traitorous body start to harden in response to her proximity. His eyes fluttered shut with a low moan. He wasn't made of stone after all. At the end of the day he was still a drunken sixteen year old male who'd had very limited sexual experience. Certainly, he'd never had a girl hang all over him and touch him the way Regina Crane was touching him now. She traced her tongue across his bare skin, rubbing against him in a way that felt impossibly good. With his inhibitions lowered by alcohol, it was easy to give himself over to the pleasure Regina Crane was eliciting with her bold kisses. However, when she dared to slip her hand into the waistband of his jeans, Danny finally gathered the resolve to shove her away.

"You should stop," he told her, "I think you've got the wrong idea about me."

She angled a meaningful look towards his crotch. "I think I have _exactly_ the right idea."

"I'm not interested."

Regina emitted a short laugh and gave a defiant toss of her head, clearly unconvinced by his denials. "Your mouth says 'no' but your body obviously has other ideas. And if you're waiting for _Lacey_ to give it up...that's never going to happen, Socio."

It was then, when she swooped forward to kiss him that Danny finally caught sight of the necklace that adorned her throat. As soon as he saw it, Danny sobered immediately. He recoiled from her and, with surprising agility for someone with so unsteady a gait, squirming his way around her before quickly descending into a near panic.

For most of the night, he hadn't paid too much attention to Regina's accessories. The ornamental piece that dangled from the fragile, gold chain had been hidden in the neckline of her backless shirt. He had never glimpsed the pendant that hung from it...until right then. And, now that he had, he couldn't look away. Every muscle in Danny's body seemed to go rigid and then tremble uncontrollably.

He recognized the necklace right away. The pendant was made of delicate, gleaming gold with an oblong, web-like design. At the center was a large, polished ruby stone which was encircled completely by smaller rubies. He had only ever seen that piece of jewelry on one other person and she was dead now...his aunt, Tara Desai. The last time he had laid eyes on that necklace it had been on her corpse. It glinted at him now in the muted light of Regina Crane's kitchen almost defiantly. Danny bit down against the impulse to vomit.

"Where the hell did you get that?"

"What?" she asked with a frown, noting the way Danny regarded her necklace as if it were a poisonous scorpion. "You mean this?" She surveyed him with a curious frown, puzzled by his alarming reaction. "It was a gift from my father," she said, "I hardly ever wear it. I just decided to put it on tonight."

"Your father?"

"Yeah," Regina confirmed, "He gave it to me almost two years ago...right before he killed himself."

Although Danny was still reeling, he somehow managed to stammer, "I'm...I'm sorry."

Regina shrugged. "It's okay. It was either suicide or 25 years in prison for embezzlement and fraud. I guess he chose the lesser of two evils. Why does it matter to you so much?"

"It just...it reminds me of something else," he uttered softly.

Upon his admission, the curiosity in Regina's eyes gradually hardened into something decidedly more cunning. "Really? Does it remind you of _something_?" she pressed in a knowing tone, "Or _someone_?"


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

Lacey slowed her silver Volkswagen Jetta to less than 15 mph when she spotted the two stumbling individuals just beyond her headlights. Danny and Jo hadn't gotten very far in their condition, less than a block really but it was concerning how they were randomly weaving in and out of the street. It was clear that Jo was the more unsteady of the two but Danny had his work cut out for him keeping her upright when he too was swaying somewhat. That was a disaster waiting to happen.

When Regina had swooped down on Danny and dragged him into the kitchen back at the party, Lacey had been overcome with anger and jealousy. Her first instinct was to go charging after them and break up whatever Regina had planned, an impulse she quickly squelched. Instead, she spent those few minutes they were in the kitchen together trying not to imagine what they were doing together and stamping down the waves of nausea and anxiety those thoughts brought with them. She brooded, not only over the fact they were together but also the fact that she cared at all.

However, when Danny had come staggering from the kitchen a few minutes later looking every bit as shaken as he had the day he confessed to Tara Desai's murder, Lacey's jealousy had instantly given way to concern. That concern only grew when he began navigating his way through the party to locate Jo and then the two of them departed shortly after. Both worried and curious about what had prompted Danny to beat such an abrupt retreat, Lacey was out the door and in her car even before she realized she'd actually made the decision to follow them.

She pulled up beside them presently, biting back an ironic smile over the comical way they teetered and tottered against one another as they stepped back on the sidewalk. She rolled down her passenger side window. "Exactly how much did you guys have to drink tonight?"

Jo squealed with drunken delight, draping herself across Danny in an uncoordinated embrace. "Danny, look, we're saved! It's Lacey! She changed her mind! She loves us again."

Danny braced his arm against the roof of her car and leaned forward to regard Lacey with a heavy lidded stare. "I thought you were done with us. What are you doing here, Lace?"

"I saw you guys leave and I figured they likely didn't teach you how to drive in prison, did they?"

He favored her with a lopsided grin. "I guess I was too busy making license plates," he teased, "Besides...I probably shouldn't be behind the wheel of a car in my condition anyway. I'm a little drunk."

"Really? I couldn't tell," Lacey replied with an exasperated eye roll, "Get in, you losers."

With a widening grin, Danny helped an uncoordinated Jo climb into the backseat of Lacey's car before he ducked into the passenger's seat. He offered Lacey a grateful smile. "Thanks. You didn't have to stop for us."

"Yes, I did. God forbid you both end up plastered all over the front of someone's car because you couldn't stay on the sidewalk. You two are walking statistics."

From the backseat, Jo sang out airily, "Thank you, Lacey, for keeping us from becoming pulpy roadkill! You're the best there is! Isn't she, Danny? Isn't she the best there is?"

Lacey flicked her with a sardonic glance in the rearview mirror. "Yeah, you're definitely wasted," she sighed, "And you're welcome, Jo."

The aforementioned then sprawled out across the backseat with a dramatic sigh. "I like your car, Lacey," she remarked in a drowsy tone, "It must be nice to have a car. I only have a bike. I wish _I_ had a car but I dunno how to drive. Driving must be nice. I can feel the world spinning. We should hang out together more, you guys! This is fun!" Danny and Lacey traded glances brimming with laughter as Jo rambled on and on to no one in particular. "You wanna know what else I like? Jell-O shooters." She smacked her lips for effect. "So good. Lime and lemon and straaawberry. Yum. That's some good stuff there, my peeps. Good stuff..."

"You won't think so in the morning," Lacey predicted dryly. She directed a pointed look at Danny. "I hope you know that Chief Masterson is going to kick your ass."

"Yeah, I'm aware of that," he hedged, "I seriously doubt Jo told her folks that she would be with me tonight so when I take her back home that's going to be interesting." He slid Lacey a beseeching look. "You wanna help me face him?"

"I'll pass on that," Lacey replied, choking back another round of laugher when Jo set up a chorus of intoxicated singing in the backseat, "I'm going to leave this one to you, Desai." As Jo reached a deafening crescendo and ended her note on a screeching climax, Lacey cringed and threw Danny with a deep frown. "My God, did you let her _swim_ in Quervo tonight? I thought you were going to keep an eye on her."

"Oh no, no, no, no," Danny retorted, "I'm not taking the blame for this one. That hot mess back there is all on you, Lacey Porter."

"On me? How is this my fault?"

"You're the one who told her that you didn't want to be friends again," Danny reminded her softly, "You essentially told her you were done with the past and then proceeded to ignore her after _you_ were the one who invited her to the party in the first place. She took it pretty hard."

As if to add validity to Danny's charge, Jo chose that precise moment to lean forward and poke her head into the space between the driver's and passenger's seats. She regarded Lacey with a sad pout which might have been comical if her feelings weren't genuinely wounded. "He's right, you know," she slurred in confirmation, "You hurt me tonight, Lacey. You hurt me bad. I thought you wanted to be my friend again."

"I _do_ want that, Jo. Everything is just so...so _complicated_. I'm sorry for hurting you. That wasn't my intention tonight. I really did want to fix things with us."

"I know you did. I totally get it, Lacey. You can't be around me because you can't be around Danny."

Lacey's fingers tightened reflexively on the steering wheel. She ignored Danny's probing stare as he waited for her answer. "I think that's an oversimplification."

Danny responded to that with a humorless smirk. "In other words, she's right and you know it. Either you're avoiding her because of me or you're not, Lacey."

"Stay out of it!" Lacey retorted, "This is between Jo and me! It has nothing to do with you, Danny."

"It has _everything_ to do with me!" he bit back, "I'm the reason you two aren't friends anymore! Can't you let me fix it?"

"Like I already said, it's not that simple."

"I know exactly what you're doing, you know?" Danny replied softly, "You're running. The idea of getting close to Jo and I again scares the hell out of you. And that's what you always do when you get scared, Lacey. You run."

"That is _not_ true!"

"Oh yes, it is!" Jo insisted with a blustering candor that was afforded only to the very apathetic or the very, _very_ drunk. "You _ran_ from what happened to Danny! You _ran_ from me! You _ran_ from your mom! And you're running now! Aren't you _tired_ yet, Lacey? You must be exhausted."

"This isn't about me!" Lacey protested in rising aggravation, "I'm not the problem here! Are we all forgetting that Danny went to _prison for murder_ and turned all of our lives into _Children of the Corn_? _That's_ the problem!"

Jo threw up her hands with an exasperated groan. "Oh, get over it, Lacey!" she exploded wildly, "In fact...both you _and_ Danny should just freaking get over yourselves and talk it out! Just lay everything on the table! Yeah, I know Danny's a killer but he went to jail and he's rehabilitated now and...and, let's be honest here, Tara Desai was a complete bitch! I'm not saying she deserved to get whacked or anything but she wasn't some angel fallen from heaven!"

Danny twisted around to face her, caught somewhere between gratitude at her defense of him, mortification over her candor and anger that they were even talking about Tara at all. "Jo, that's enough."

"No, it's not enough. We never talk about it. We never talk about how she used to smack you around or the hateful crap she used to say to you...that you were evil and unlovable and a burden to everybody," Jo pressed on doggedly, "And you know what the worst part is, Danny? The worst part is that you _believed_ her. You believed every nasty thing she ever said about you. You didn't see how good you were and you let her ruin your whole life! But you _weren't_ the monster, okay! _She_ was!"

"Are you good now?" he asked calmly when she had concluded her rant, his composure belying the rigid tension in his back and shoulders, "Did you get it all out of your system?"

"Almost. I wanna say something else... _something important_. Lacey loves you. You love Lacey. And I love both you idiots!" she continued frankly, "And you need to do something about that. You _both_ need to do something so we can be like we were before! I miss that. So just kiss and make up, will you? You know you want to, so just give in to it!" She appraised Lacey with a knowing grin, impervious to the growing embarrassment and tension was creating with her unreserved observations. "It's not like it would be the first time, am I right?"

In an effort to cover her embarrassment and distract herself from the fact Danny was regarding her rather intently right then, Lacey grunted, "You're such a sloppy drunk, Jo. Your parents are going to kill you and you might want to prepare yourself for that instead of lecturing us. So, sit back, put on your seatbelt and sleep it off."

"Ay! Ay! Mon capitan!" Jo replied with a tipsy salute. Without further incident, she complied with Lacey's instructions and scooted back into her seat, clicking her seatbelt into place. Once she was finished, Jo settled comfortably into her seat and stacked her hands behind her head in a relaxed posture. She closed her eyes and expelled a deep, contented sigh. Danny and Lacey hoped devoutly that she would fall asleep and, thereby, put an end to her unabashed truth telling. That hope proved to be in vain.

"You're right, Lacey," she slurred drowsily, eyes still closed, "I _am_ a sloppy drunk and I'm probably going to be grounded until I graduate high school. _But_...that doesn't change the fact that you still want to kiss Danny. I've seen the way you stare at him when you think he's not looking." Jo yawned broadly as both Danny and Lacey squirmed uneasily in their seats. "Don't worry. He wants to kiss you too. He's liked you since forever. So you both should jump on that because...you're giving me really bad anxiety and I don't want to have to go back on my meds...damn it!"

She thankfully dropped off into sleep soon after that but, by then, the scabbed over wounds that had been festering between the three of them for the better part of five years had already been torn open. The bleeding was profuse and now that they were running freely Danny and Lacey knew they would have to address it. While Jo slumbered in the backseat, the two rode the remainder of the way to her house in silence. Danny stared sullenly out the passenger side window, trying futilely to put all Jo had said out of his mind while praying fervently that Lacey wouldn't push the issue. Meanwhile, in confirmation of his greatest fear, Lacey was searching for a way to address everything Jo had mentioned in her drunken rant.

During the five minutes Danny took delivering a half unconscious Jo to her parents' front door, Lacey practiced broaching what was sure to be a touchy subject for Danny. When he finally slid back into the car, Lacey took one look at his harried expression and momentarily lost her train of thought. She had to swallow her spurt of laughter. "How'd it go with Jo's dad?" He expelled a reticent grunt in answer. "That bad, huh?"

"Let's just say I'm not a fan favorite and leave it at that," Danny mumbled, "Her dad is probably never going to let her see me again."

"Don't sweat it. You know Jo. She'll get around that," Lacey reassured him, "Since when have you ever know her to do what she's told?"

"You have a point."

"So did she, by the way," Lacey inserted quietly, as she shifted the car into drive, "Everything Jo said tonight...about your Aunt Tara and how horribly she treated you and how none of that was your fault...she was right about that, you know?"

Danny slouched down low in his seat, a sure sign he was about to shut down on her. "Can we not talk about it?"

" _Not_ talking about it has never gotten us anywhere," Lacey argued stubbornly, "I'll always regret that we didn't tell Jo's dad what was happening to you. Maybe if we had-,"

"-I didn't want anyone to know," he interrupted sharply, "It was _my_ problem!"

"You were kid, Danny!" Lacey retorted, "It wasn't your fault and it wasn't something you could fix on your own." She fell into a pensive silence, nibbling her lip in uncertainty before finally finding the courage to ask, "Is...Is that why you did it...because she was hurting you?"

He averted his eyes, turning his attention back to the moonlit darkness that surrounded them. "No."

"Then why?" Lacey pressed, "What exactly happened that day to make you snap, Danny?"

"I don't want to talk about this, Lacey," he uttered hoarsely, "Please don't make me. I can't tell you what happened that day." He swiveled suddenly in his seat to face her, his expression suddenly earnest and solemn when he said, "But you need to know that I didn't plan it. I had never even thought about it."

"So then she must have _done_ something to you that day..." she considered urgently, "... _said_ something... What was it, Danny? You can tell me."

"Really? I can tell you?" he quipped with an acerbic smile, "I should just confess to you all my deepest, darkest secrets, huh, Lace? Up until two hours ago, you weren't even speaking to me."

She flinched at the harsh censure in his tone. "You're right. Point taken."

Chastened by the hurt in her tone, Danny softened a bit. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be a jerk. I appreciate your concern, Lacey, I do," he sighed, "But I _can't_ talk about it. I don't know if I'll _ever_ be able to talk about it. I really need to you respect that and back off."

"So you're just going to keep it bottled up inside of you forever?"

"That's the plan." Because he sensed her intention to launch into a detailed lecture about why such a plan was shortsighted, emotionally unhealthy and counterproductive, Danny was prepared to quickly change the subject. "So uh..." he began in a casual drawl, "...you told Jo that we shared our first kiss together after all, huh?"

Lacey did an incredulous double-take. "Oh my god, Danny! You're bringing that up _now_?"

"If there's a better time, let me know," he replied dryly, "I just never thought you'd say anything. You were pretty adamant about keeping it quiet after it happened. If I remember correctly you threatened to break my kneecaps if I ever breathed a word of it to Jo. I half expected to come home and find a horse's head in my bed."

She reached over to punch him playfully in the bicep, clearly having a difficult time holding her smile at bay. "Shut up! You're so ridiculous."

Danny made quite the production of being seriously injured both emotionally and physically. "Wow, I see you've added stinging verbal abuse to your repertoire. Gah...Lace, you're as violent now as you were then. I think I've lost feeling in my fingers, woman."

"Whatever. You're still such a baby."

The two shared a short spurt of laughter, easily falling back into the old routine between them without even being aware of it. "So why'd you change your mind about telling her?" he pressed, "I thought you were 'taking it to your grave.'"

"Things changed. I didn't know that you'd be sent away to juvie less than a month later and that was all there would ever be between us," Lacey replied gruffly, "I didn't tell Jo until after you were sent away to Huntington and it was during a weak moment. I may have cried a little."

His smile faltered with her confession. "I'm sorry, Lacey. I wasn't trying to stir up bad memories."

"It's okay. I guess I was going to tell her eventually anyway. I was eleven years old and you were the first boy I'd ever kissed," Lacey stressed, "At the time, it all seemed very life changing. Jo was my best friend. I told her all of my secrets."

"Who do you tell your secrets to now?" Danny wondered.

"No one."

She didn't elaborate on the reasons why that was the case despite having so many friends who could provide a listening ear but Danny had his suspicions. He recognized the truth in her tone of voice and in the sadness that lurked in the brown depths of her eyes. She lacked faith in people in much the same way he and Jo did. At a very early age, they had all been gravely disillusioned by those they'd cared about the most and it had left all three of them cynical, jaded and wary in varying degrees. It seemed strange that they should each be suffering from the same exact anxieties and yet coping with their problems in such vastly different ways. Danny remarked on that particular singularity to Lacey.

She scoffed at the comparison. "I don't think so. I'm nothing like you and Jo."

Danny scowled at her tone, tensing in mild affront. "Geez, Lacey, I didn't think it was a fate worse than death for you!"

"That's not what I meant," she laughed lightly, "I'm just saying I tend to analyze things more than you guys do. You and Jo have always acted on pure instinct. You go with your gut. That can be a good thing but, most of the time, it's a _bad_ thing. That's the whole reason you both make such awful choices. That's how you get hurt."

"And is that why you surround yourself with people who are clearly not worth your time?" Danny challenged, "Because you don't want to be hurt?"

She appraised him with an amused grimace. "Are you trying to psychoanalyze me right now?"

"Nope. Just trying to get into your head, Lacey Porter," he replied. _And your heart._

Several minutes later Lacey pulled her car to a stop in front of his house. Danny didn't miss the shuddering breath of dread she released when she threw the car into park and surveyed the house. The panic on her face was unmistakable. He regarded her with a sympathetic sigh. "It gets to me too...every time I see it," he admitted softly, "I remember and I'm back at that day." Lacey darted him a startled look, her expression suspended in doubt before the corner of her mouth finally lifted in a small, commiserative smile. Danny smiled back. "Thanks again for the ride. You saved me hours of tedious drunk walking."

"Or possibly becoming...what did Jo call it again...'pulpy roadkill.' Don't forget that. I'm your hero, Danny Desai."

Danny chuckled at her teasing, his smile lingering even after his laughter died away. Before he could debate the wisdom of doing so, he said, "You should come inside."

Lacey instantly became guarded with the invitation, her expression growing wary and hesitant. "I don't know," she hedged, "It's getting late. I should really get home."

"I have Blue Ranch potato chips," Danny announced in a clear attempt at bribery. Lacey bit back a smile. "Sweet cheddar? Bacon Jalapeño? Come on, tell me I'm winning here, Lace."

Fifteen minutes later they had managed to sneak up to his bedroom undetected with an armful of their favorite childhood snacks and an entire twelve pack of cola. As they arranged their bounty on his bed, Lacey surveyed his room with a curious frown, noting the familiar posters and decor. Even the comforter on his bed remained unaltered.

"I feel like I'm in a time warp," she said, "Your room looks exactly the way it did when we were eleven. It's kind of freaky."

"Thank my mom for that. Apparently, she's allergic to change."

Lacey pulled open the bag of Blue Ranch and nibbled on a chip before she said, "Still, it's probably a little comforting for you to come home to something familiar, right?"

"Honestly? I found _juvie_ more comforting than this house."

"Really? Why would you say that? It was prison."

Danny shrugged at the consideration. "Yeah, it was that but, there was a certain steadiness in the routine I had. I knew what to expect every single day. You get up, shower, eat and sleep all at a designated time. Even your recreation was scheduled. Nothing was a surprise. It was all very regimented and it made me feel like...like..."

"...like you had some semblance of control," Lacey finished for him astutely.

After jerking a terse nod, Danny reached over to pluck a chip from the bag and pop it into his mouth. "That probably sounds dumb seeing as how I was in prison."

"No, I get it. Having a routine can be stabilizing. God knows, I felt like my life got shot to hell after my parents split. I didn't have control over anything."

He leaned forward to cover her hand briefly with his own. "Jo told me about the divorce. I'm sorry you had to go through that, Lacey. I wish I had been here to help you."

She blinked against the sudden tears that burned in her eyes. "It was inevitable," she replied in a thickened tone, "They were fighting all the time. Dad started sleeping in the guest room and then he stopped coming home altogether. Clare and I barely saw him anymore. He moved out to Seattle, Washington about a year ago, a couple of days after my fifteenth birthday." Her lips quirked in a bittersweet smile. "I guess nothing last forever, right?"

"Don't do that," he whispered, "Don't cry, Lace. You'll get the chips all soggy."

Lacey's sadness was instantly forgotten with her sudden crack of laughter over his impertinent humor. She gave him a playful shove. "God, you are such an ass!"

"Yeah, but you find it a little endearing. Admit it."

For the next hour they binged on chips, cupcakes and Coke, talked about everything from middle school woes to celebrity gossip. There were times when the conversation inevitably turned melancholy but then either Danny or Lacey would make a joke and the good humor would be restored once again. When they finished snacking, they stretched out on Danny's bed together much the way they had as children, and perused the direct tv list guide for shows to watch on television. They were debating about whether to settle on an episode of Food Network's _Chopped_ or find the scariest movie imaginable to watch when Danny abruptly hopped from the bed.

"Those choices sound good but keep looking," he said, "I gotta go brush my teeth. Those Bacon Jalapeno chips left a funky aftertaste in my mouth."

A minute after he had gone, Lacey located a movie on the guide in which she thought they both might be interested. While she waited, she loitered around his room, thumbing casually through the magazines and books scattered on his desk. Although she had every intention of preoccupying herself with nosing through his stuff until he returned, Lacey found herself drifting across the hall towards the bathroom instead. She propped her shoulder against the frame of the open door, watching with a faint smile as he diligently flossed his teeth. It annoyed her a little that he could manage to look so appealing even when performing such a mundane task.

Growing increasingly self-conscious under her scrutiny, Danny finally darted a look at her. "What? Why are you staring at me with that creepy smile on your face?"

"No particular reason," she murmured, though she was unable to banish her "creepy" smile no matter how hard she tried, "I was just remembering when we were kids. You used to have this whole tooth brushing regimen. It was hilarious. Jo and I used to make fun of you during our sleepovers."

"Tooth brushing regimen?" he replied as he resumed his task, "I don't know what you mean. What's that?"

"You'd brush your teeth for like two full minutes," Lacey recounted, "Then floss, then rinse for thirty seconds exactly and _then_ you'd inspect your teeth in the mirror to see if you'd missed a spot. If you weren't satisfied, you'd start the whole process all over again. You were so anal about it. _And_..." she added laughingly as she watched him engage in the same exact routine now, "...I can see not much has changed."

Danny finished gargling and then spit out his mouthwash. "What? I care about dental hygiene, okay!"

"Yes, I very much remember your paralyzing fear of cavities, dentures and gum disease," Lacey teased.

"I'll have you know," he went on as he inspected his teeth in the mirror, "that gingivitis can often lead to periodontitis which can result in serious heart conditions that can be fatal. I'm actually being heart healthy."

"Fascinating."

He swung around to face her then and began closing the distance between them in deliberate inches. "Are you making fun of me right now?"

"Yep...just a little bit."

"Did you ever consider that maybe I had a specific reason in mind for wanting my breath minty fresh?" he wondered softly.

"And why is that?"

It was at the moment that Lacey became acutely aware of their proximity. His face was mere inches from hers, his body impossibly close. She could feel the warmth radiating off of his skin. The atmosphere between them seemed to crackle and pop with the latent attraction between them. Lacey suddenly wished that she had brushed _her_ teeth as well because she got the distinct and inescapable impression that she was about to be kissed pretty thoroughly. She anticipated the moment almost as much as she feared it. Her heart started to pound double-time.

In confirmation of her suspicion, Danny dropped his eyes briefly to her lips. "Did you know that you're still the only girl that I've ever kissed?"

Lacey tried to cover her sudden jitteriness with a weak joke. "So you've kissed quite a few boys then?"

He didn't even crack a smile. It was clear that Danny had single-minded purpose right then. "Nope. No boys either. Just you."

"You mean you and Regina weren't groping each other like animals in heat when she dragged you into the kitchen tonight?"

Danny favored her with a lopsided grin. "So you _were_ watching me the entire night. Good to know you couldn't get me out of your head, Porter."

"Oh, get over yourself, Desai."

He dropped his eyes to her lips once more. "I still think about it," he whispered.

"Think about what?" she whispered back.

"That day we kissed. I think about what it might feel like..." he continued softly as he lowered his head, "...to do it again."

Just before his lips could make contact, however, Lacey sidestepped him with a nervous cough. "That's probably not a good idea. Things are complicated enough between us, don't you think?"

"Right...because you have a boyfriend," he concluded rather sullenly.

"Yeah...I have a boyfriend."

That forceful reminder of Archie was liked being doused with cold water. With some horror, Lacey realized that she hadn't thought of her boyfriend a single time, not since picking up Jo and Danny after the party. Her stomach twisted with self-disgust. The uncertainty of their relationship notwithstanding, she was still officially Archie Yates' girlfriend. However, when she had staved off Danny's kiss, it had nothing to do with her relationship with Archie and everything to do with her fear of falling for Danny. To do so would be risking her already fragile heart. He had warned her himself. She couldn't trust him. If she let herself be charmed by him then it was most certainly going to lead to catastrophe. The last thing Lacey Porter wanted was to be emotionally eviscerated by Danny Desai yet again.

But he was already doing it to her, twisting her heart around his finger as if it were nothing more than a satin ribbon. One night with him and she had, not only forgotten about her boyfriend, his past and her own strict resolutions concerning him, but she had seriously considered kissing him until she was breathless. Further disgusted with herself, Lacey took a step back and squared her shoulders.

"I should go."

Danny's reaction was quick, unguarded and filled with vulnerability. "No, don't do that," he pleaded, stepping into her path when she would have turned to leave, "I swear I won't try to kiss you again." She regarded him cautiously from beneath her lashes, weighing the wisdom of believing his promise. "I will keep my hands to myself, Lacey. Just...please don't go yet. I'm not ready to say goodbye to you."

In the end, Lacey reluctantly agreed to stay and watch _one_ movie with him and then she was going home. They finally decided on a classic, _the Goonies_ , and by the time they were thirty minutes into it, she was able to relax enough to enjoy it. However, by the time Mikey was making his impassioned speech against riding up out of the well on Troy's bucket, Lacey was fast asleep.

Smiling at the picture she made curled up on his bed, Danny grabbed a blanket and covered her with it. He knew he should probably wake her but it was the last thing he wanted to do. After their aborted kiss in the bathroom and the skittish way Lacey had behaved with him afterwards, Danny was pretty certain that this was the closest he would ever come to having Lacey Porter in his bed. He wanted to savor the every second, especially because he didn't know what the next day would bring.

With a resolved sigh, he rolled from the bed, grabbing a pillow with the intention of making a pallet for himself on the floor when his cell phone vibrated to signal an incoming text message. Curious about who would be texting him at nearly three in the morning, Danny tugged the device from his back pocket and read the message. _Can you come over tonight? I need to see you_. His brow creased in a bewildered frown as he did not immediately recognize the number.

His fingers flew over the keys in response. _Who is this?_

He didn't have to wait long for an answer. _Someone who wants to finish what we started in the kitchen. You game?_

 _Regina? How'd you get my number?_

 _I have my secret ways.:) Come over. I can help you release all that pent up prison frustration._

Danny rolled his eyes at her persistence. _Some other time._

 _Tonight! I need you so bad. Please come over._

 _Sorry. You're going to have to get it from someone else. I'm going to bed now. Night, Regina._

He started to place the phone on his nightstand when it buzzed yet again. With an exasperated sigh, Danny read the text. _I think you're going to want to see me. I know what really happened with your aunt. And your father._ A violent trembling overtook him almost instantaneously as he assimilated the words and the ominous threat they contained. Danny nearly dropped the phone because his fingers were shaking so badly. He darted a reflexive glance over at Lacey, certain the rapid pounding of his heart right then was audible enough to wake her. But she slept on. Danny, however, didn't relax.

With a rough swallow, he glanced back down at his phone, reading Regina's text message again and again. She _had_ to be bluffing. There was no way she knew anything about that day. Anyone besides him who could possibly know the truth was dead and he certainly hadn't said anything. Still, he couldn't dismiss her words as a simple trick to get him into bed, not when he thought about that necklace she had been wearing tonight...a necklace that had been so reminiscent of his Aunt Tara's. If Regina Crane really _did_ know the truth then she could possibly shatter what was left of his family. She could turn his whole world upside down.

Danny couldn't let that happen, not after everything he had been through and how far he had come. He had to be sure about what was happening. And, when he _was_ sure, when he had learned everything Regina Crane knew and didn't know about him and his family, he was going to deal with it...and _her_.


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

Lacey Porter awakened, feeling incredibly content and cradled in a cocoon of protective arms, her cheek pillowed against warm chest. Still half asleep, she angled her bleary gaze up at a sleeping Danny. His breath escaped his slightly parted lips in a deep, even intervals, indicating the fact that he was still in a very deep slumber. For a split, unguarded second, it all felt absolutely right. Lacey inhaled his scent and strummed her fingers across the bare skin of his belly where his t-shirt had ridden up before curving her arm around his waist to snuggle closer. However, the instant she started to let her eyes sink closed it suddenly hit her that she shouldn't be in Danny's bed at all, much less lying in his arms. Her eyes flew wipe open. And then she was very much awake.

She started to pop upright in swamping mortification but she caught herself at the last minute when she realized the any sudden motion would likely jar Danny awake. Sometime after she had fallen asleep, he had changed from his party clothes and into a soft, gray tee and a pair of checkered grey and black pajama bottoms. He had also showered. Lacey could detect the faint, soapy scent on his skin. It only made her even more aware of her own rumpled clothing and, what was sure to be, disheveled bed hair.

Growing more and more self-conscious by the second, Lacey searched for the most expedient way to extricate herself without waking him, gradually becoming aware of their awkward positioning as she did so. Not only was she nestled against his flank with his arm draped loosely over her shoulder but she had also thrown her leg across him so that her thigh was resting against his groin. When she carefully shifted her leg aside Lacey tried not to be too mindful of the telltale tenting at his crotch.

Once her leg was repositioned, Lacey turned her attention to gingerly removing his arm from around her shoulder and ducking out from underneath him. He grunted in his sleep and she froze in place, waiting with suspended breath as he turned onto his belly, burrowed his tousled head deeper into his pillow and then settled once more. Only when she was certain he wasn't going to wake did Lacey finally roll from the bed with the stealth of a seasoned ninja.

Carefully, she tiptoed around his room to gather her shoes and jacket. It took her a few seconds to remember she'd left her purse and cell phone in the car. But while she was rooting around looking for them she caught a glimpse of the time on Danny's nightstand clock. The black digital numbers read 4:58. Lacey hissed a foul curse under her breath.

She hadn't merely slept for an hour or two as she first assumed, she had spent the _entire night_ in bed with Danny! And when she thought about how she had lain stiffly beside him while watching the movie, nervous and alert the entire time because her desire to kiss him simply would not wan, her guilt and embarrassment increased exponentially. They hadn't had sex, hadn't even come _close_ to having sex and yet Lacey still felt like she was doing the walk of shame by sneaking from his bedroom before dawn. She was going to have to navigate, not only getting out of his house undetected but also getting _into_ her own without alerting her mother.

Her hope that she would meet with success for either endeavor died a quick death when she went to pull open Danny's door and sneak out of it and his alarm clock suddenly blared to life. Lacey practically jumped out of her skin while a roused Danny reached out to shut off the alarm and then rolled upright. When he realized Lacey was no longer in bed with him, he grunted her name, surprised to find her standing near his bedroom door, her shoes dangling from her fingertips. He scrubbed the sleep from his eyes and squinted at her.

"Hey..." he croaked groggily, "Are you leaving?"

Lacey swallowed her defeated groan and slowly pivoted to face him, though she had difficulty meeting his eyes directly. "It's five o'clock in the morning, Danny," she said, "I never meant to stay the whole night. I really gotta go."

"I know you do," he replied, his voice scratchy with sleep, "I probably should have woken you up last night but you looked so peaceful and I didn't want to disturb you. I figured I'd let you rest and then wake you up early. That's why I set my alarm. I usually try and avoid knowing what five o'clock in the morning looks like if I can."

Despite her earlier embarrassment, Lacey couldn't repress her answering smile. "Thanks for that," she whispered without censure, "It was actually the best sleep I've had in weeks. No nightmares."

"That's good. I'm glad." An uncomfortable beat of silence passed between them before Danny spoke again. "So what happens now?"

She ducked her head, shielding her face behind a curtain of rumpled hair. "I'm not sure."

"If this is it, Lacey, I get it, okay. Everything can't be undone in one night."

"I don't want this to be it."

Their eyes collided in a penetrating stare. Lacey was overcome with the unexpected and undeniable urge to climb back into bed with him and _not_ just to cuddle. The desire left her confused and anxious because she didn't know where it had come from or why it was so strong. At the same time, she was also painfully aware of the minutes ticking by on the clock.

"I wish I could stay and talk this out with you but, I'm treading on thin ice as it is. My mom is going to kill me."

"I understand. But I want you to know that I had fun last night and I don't have any expectations. If last night is all we're going to have...then okay. No matter what happens between us from this point on, I'm glad we had a chance to reconnect, Lace. It meant a lot to me."

There was something in his tone that gave her pause, a defeated edge that she couldn't recall hearing the night before. Lacey had expected after what happened between them that he would be filled with hope for the possibilities between them, not filled with expectation for loss. She was almost inclined to believe she was imagining his inexplicable shift in mood because she couldn't fathom what possibly could have changed for him in the matter of a few hours.

But the longer she looked at him, the more aware she became of the dark circles under his eyes. His face appeared haggard and weary, far beyond what was usual for someone recently awakened from sleep. Actually, he didn't appear well rested at all. The realization worried her.

"Listen, I know it's going to be awkward at school with everything that's happened and we might not be able to have things back to where they were before as soon as we'd like, but..." she began softly, "...It's not like we're never going to talk again, Danny. I thought we made a lot of progress last night. I want to see where it goes."

"Where our _friendship_ goes or...?" he stressed, his eyes asking an altogether different question.

Her eyes skittered away timorously. "Well, yeah..." she mumbled, "But you're acting like this is it...like you expect something drastic to happen."

"Something drastic _always_ happens where I'm concerned," he grunted, "I've spent practically my entire life waiting for the other shoe to drop. Things can change very quickly and it's easy to say you want to be my friend again when it's just you and me in this room."

Lacey's lips thinned with annoyance. "So you're saying you expect me to bail on you? Wow, your soaring opinion of me is overwhelming."

"It's not a judgment against you. I'm being realistic. Besides, weren't _you_ the one trying to sneak out of here five minutes ago? I got the distinct impression you were ashamed about spending the night."

"Is that really so surprising to you? Sorry, it was a little awkward for me waking up in your bed this morning. I'm not sure my _boyfriend_ would be very understanding about that."

Danny ran his hand through his sleep tousled hair. "Right. That guy again."

Once again detecting the note of defeat in his tone, Lacey scrutinized him with narrowed eyes. "What's up with you? You seem off to me this morning."

He favored her with a crooked smile but Lacey wasn't fooled by his attempt at charm. It was easy to see the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Isn't that an oxymoron, Lace? Aren't I always a little off?"

"Don't try to joke your way out of this, Desai. I know something is bothering you and you're _going_ to tell me what it is."

She knew her instincts were on track as soon as he started to shut down on her. "Lacey, you have to get out of here and I don't-,"

"-Nope. I don't want to hear your excuses," she interrupted tartly, "We're done with doing things the old way. You say you want to be friends...well, friends _talk_ , Danny! Get used to it!"

He ducked his head with a soft, ironic laugh. "Damn. I'd almost forgotten how bossy you can be."

"I prefer to think of it as being highly motivated," Lacey countered, "I'm going to give my mom some time to calm down and then I'll call you this afternoon. Can we talk then?"

"Will it matter at all if I tell you 'no?'"

"Not really."

He swallowed an exasperated grunt. "Then yeah. Sure, we can talk then."

Several minutes later, Lacey managed to sneak down the steps and out the front door without being intercepted by Danny's mother. She was feeling pretty good about herself until she ducked inside of her car and switched on her cell phone. With a horrified groan, she noted that she had over fifty missed calls. Lacey quickly scrolled through the list, noting quite a few from Regina, Sarita and Archie respectively. The majority of the calls, however, had come from her mother.

Lacey slipped on her shoes and lingered for a moment. She debated the wisdom of calling home right away to prepare her mother for her arrival or simply putting off the verbal lashing she knew was coming until she actually stepped through the front door. When she thought about the certain wrath that awaited her, Lacey decided to go with the latter choice.

By the time Lacey pulled into the garage, she was a nervous wreck. She wiped her sweaty palms against her black skirt before gathering together her belongings and exiting the car. The garage door opened off of the kitchen, so Lacey held out the faint hope that she might be able to sneak up the stairs without being detected. But as soon as she set foot in the kitchen, the room was suddenly flooded with light and she was brought face to face with her frazzled and enraged mother. Lacey stopped short with a distressed squeak.

"I can explain," she blurted out in pure self-preservation.

"Where the hell have you been?" Judy exploded, "I've been calling you all night long! Why didn't you answer any of my calls or texts? I thought you might have gotten into an accident and were in a ditch somewhere!"

Lacey cringed with each hammering accusation. "I'm fine, Mom," she replied lamely, "and the car is fine. I didn't have my cell with me and that's why I didn't get your calls. I never meant to worry you."

"Where were you?" her mother enunciated, "And don't bother lying to me because none of your friends knew where you were either!"

"You called them?" She tried not to groan aloud at that revelation.

"Of course I did! When you didn't come home by two o'clock, I started to panic. Sarita said you left Regina's party early and that she hadn't seen you since. Archie and Regina didn't have any idea where you were either."

"That's because I wasn't with them."

"Are you sure? Because Regina suddenly stopped answering my calls last night so I didn't know if that was at your request or not."

"No. I don't know why she stopped answering but wasn't because of me."

"So then if you weren't with your friends, where were you?" Judy demanded again.

"I was with Danny and Jo."

It wasn't a complete lie. She _had_ spent the evening with Jo and Danny...just not the _entire_ evening with them both _together_. Given her mother's barely contained temper, Lacey didn't think that was the appropriate time to drop the bombshell that she had been in Danny Desai's bed the entire night. Innocent or not, she could practically imagine every blood vessel in her mother's head exploding in sheer rage. Unfortunately for Lacey, however, her half truth didn't do very much to soothe her mother's frayed nerves. If anything, Judy Porter became ten times more agitated.

"Wait a minute! You were with _Danny Desai_ all night?"

"And Jo," she added inanely, "She was there too!"

"Lacey! My God, what were you thinking? We talked about this! We both agreed that you would keep your distance from him! And the Mastersons..." she spat out in disbelieving disgust, "...what the hell are they thinking letting Jo get anywhere near him?"

"Actually, Mom, they're probably having a similar conversation with her. The Mastersons aren't exactly thrilled that she's hanging out with Danny again either."

"I can't believe this," Judy muttered.

"I know you're mad at me," Lacey acknowledged, "I was irresponsible and thoughtless tonight. I freely admit that. But there's no need for you to freak out about Danny. All we did was talk. We got a lot of things straight between us. I think he needed that and so did I."

"Lacey, I could care less what that boy needs!" her mother snapped, "I'm concerned about you right now! I don't know where your head is! You know you can't spend time with him!"

"Why not? Danny was one of my closest friends growing up! You knew him, Mom. He was in this house almost every other day. Why are you acting like he's just some drifter I picked up off of the street?"

Judy gaped at her incredulously. "Did you seriously just ask me that? You cannot be this naive!"

"Danny, Jo and I have decided to fix our friendship," Lacey declared, "It's important to us. It's important to _me_. We're going to put the past behind us and move on from it."

"Are you hearing yourself right now?" Judy railed, "Lacey, you didn't lose touch with Danny because he went away to summer camp! He killed a woman! _He went to prison!_ "

"I don't care!" The words flew out of Lacey's mouth before she could stop them but, once they were out and crackling like whizzing sparks of electricity between her and her mother, Lacey found she didn't regret saying them. In fact, she was surprised to realize she meant the words completely. Her tone was significantly calmer when she uttered again, "I don't care, Mom."

Judy sucked in a sharp breath, too appalled to make an immediate response to that declaration. When she did speak again her voice was barely above a whisper. "You don't care? You don't care that he's capable of unspeakable violence? You don't care that he put a jump rope around a defenseless woman's neck and strangled the life out of her? You don't care that he _murdered_ her in cold blood? His own family? That's acceptable to you?"

"Of course it isn't!" Lacey retorted, "But Danny lives with what he did every, single day! He's paid for it, Mom! Is he supposed to pay for it for the rest of his life?"

"I'm not saying he has to but that doesn't mean he gets to be in _your_ life again either."

"Isn't that _my_ decision to make?"

"Actually, no, it's not, Lacey! Contrary to what you may think, you are not an adult! You're still _my_ sixteen year old daughter and you're living under _my_ roof! I get to decide what's best for you!"

"Wow, you picked a fine time to try and mother me after leaving me on my own for sixteen years! I don't need you now! You don't get to dictate what is and isn't good for me!" Her angry bluster crumbled an instant later and fresh tears sprang to her eyes as she abruptly switched from righteous indignation to pleading vulnerability. "I need Danny in my life again. He is this huge part of me and denying that has only made me miserable. Last night with him and Jo was the happiest I've been in a really long time, since before Dad left us. It felt right. Don't take that away from me."

It was only then that Lacey understood that she had an answer to the question Danny had asked her that morning. Truthfully, she'd known the answer all along, since the day he had returned to Green Grove. She simply hadn't wanted to acknowledge it. It didn't matter that she and Danny had only just reconnected. It seemed inconsequential to her that there was still an abundance about him that she did not know. She wasn't completely discouraged by the secrets he continued to guard close to his heart. None of that seemed to matter because she knew the Danny he had been, the Danny she had known since she was four years old was not gone. She was absolutely certain the boy she remembered still existed and she wasn't going to turn her back on him. Never again. She made that fact plainly clear to her mother.

Judy regarded her with a dazed expression. "You mean every word of this, don't you?"

"Every. Single. Word."

Her answer to that was a rough, spasmodic swallow. She stumbled towards the nearest chair and braced her hands against the back of it to steady herself. "I'll talk to Kyle Masterson this afternoon," she said and before Lacey could calculate whether or not she had enough time to get her story straight with Jo, her mother added, "We'll see if we can somehow put a restraining order in place. I'll make it so that boy can't come within twenty feet of you without risking going back to jail!"

Lacey's reaction to that was instantaneous and explosive. "Mom, no! NO! Please don't do that!"

"You're not going to see him! You're not going to call him! You're not going to text him! It's done, Lacey! That's it!"

"You can't do that!"

"I will pull you out of school if I have to go that far!"

Lacey paced the kitchen in helpless circles. "I can't believe you're doing this to me."

"This discussion is done." Judy held out her hand, her expression resolute in the face of Lacey's growing ire. "Give me your cell phone," she ordered.

"What? No, Mom!"

"Give me the phone, Lacey," Judy reiterated implacably. Lips quivering with impotent rage and resentment, Lacey quelled the impulse to slam it into her mother's palm. She regarded Judy in stony silence. "You can have it back when you can prove to me that you can make better decisions."

"I hate you so much," Lacey seethed, her voice thick with tears, "You ruin everything." In that moment, she meant the words utterly.

"Go to bed," Judy told her, "I can't deal with you right now."

"That makes two of us!"

Lacey retreated to her bedroom then, slamming the door behind her with enough force to shake the frame and cause rippling reverberations throughout the entire house. She almost wanted to trash her room, she was so frustrated and angry but the sure knowledge that she'd have to clean up whatever mess she made afterwards helped Lacey stifle the impulse. Instead, she threw herself onto her bed and sobbed harshly into her pillow, eventually crying herself to sleep. Her next awareness was Clara jostling and pressing Lacey's confiscated cell phone into her hand. Lacey scowled at her.

"What do you want?"

"It's Sarita," she told Lacey, "Mom said you could take the call."

She brought the phone to her ear and croaked a groggy, "Hullo?"

"Good to know you're still breathing!" Sarita snapped, "God, Lacey! You scared the hell out of me! Where have you been? Did you and Regina make a pact to ignore all your calls today?"

"Regina? What about her?"

"I've been texting her since 8:00 a.m. and she hasn't responded yet."

"Since when do you get up at 8 o'clock in the morning, Sarita?"

"Since all of my friends happen to go MIA at the same time. Forgive me for giving a damn!"

"Sorry about that," Lacey grunted as she shifted upright on her bed, "What time is it now?"

"Close to one," Sarita replied.

"Damn it!" Lacey hissed. She had promised Danny that she would call him around this time but that was definitely an impossibility now since her mother was likely monitoring her calls. Now he was probably going to get the wrong idea and think she'd decided to ditch him after all. "This day just gets freaking better and better," she mumbled.

"What's going on with you, Lacey?" Sarita asked, "Where did you even go last night anyway?"

Lacey hesitated to answer that question. It was unlikely that Sarita would understand her decision to let Danny Desai back into her life anymore than her mother had. In their eyes, Danny was nothing more than a convicted killer and dangerous sociopath. Neither of them knew who he really was nor were they interested in getting to know him. There was little point then in opening herself up to Sarita's judgment and scorn, Lacey decided. It was better to keep the truth to herself.

Consequently, she told Sarita, "I needed to clear my head."

"All night?"

"I had a lot on my mind."

"Look, I get that you're pissed off at Regina or whatever but, you seriously scared the crap out of us."

"Us?"

"Archie and me. I hope you're not still mad at him too," Sarita said, "You had him going crazy last night. He was so worried something bad had happened to you."

Lacey went very still at the mention of her boyfriend. "You spoke to him?"

"We kinda traded texts back and forth trying to find out if one of us had heard from you."

"Oh."

"Have you spoken to him yet?"

"Not yet," Lacey grunted, "My mom's been all over me since I got back."

"Well, if you get the chance to talk to him, you should," Sarita advised, "Call him and put him out of his misery. And when you hear from Regina tell _her_ to call _me_."

In the small interval she had before her mother arrived to reclaim her phone, Lacey quickly listened to her messages. She had two messages from Jo. The first basically consisted of her asking if she'd said anything stupid the night before and whether or not she and Danny had found an opportunity to talk. The second message was to confirm that she was aware that Lacey had been grounded and the reason why she had been. Jo promised to get the message to Danny. There were also two missed calls from Danny himself but he hadn't left a voicemail and Lacey didn't dare risk returning them, not when she was so certain that her mother was likely lurking close by.

After she had deleted Jo's last voicemail, she then listened to her messages from Archie, Sarita and Regina. They were mostly varying refrains of the same worry, demanding to know where she was and if she was okay...all except Regina's last text message to her. Lacey read it with a growing frown.

Regina had written, _You're not the only one with secrets. I guess I can't expect you to share yours if I'm not willing to share mine. Please call me back._ Lacey read the cryptic note again and again, unable to fathom what kind of secret Regina thought she should share with her. She was still puzzling over it when she clicked off her phone. Almost the instant she did, her mother entered her bedroom to confiscate it. She glared at Judy and passed her the phone.

"Were you monitoring me the entire time? I didn't call Danny, you know!"

Judy took a moment to scroll through the history of Lacey's texts and outgoing calls in order to make sure nothing forbidden had been sent or dialed. After she was done, she shot Lacey a quelling look. "Don't take that offended tone with me. Ask _yourself_ why it had to come to this."

She continued to regard Lacey speculatively before she said, "I spoke to Kyle Masterson a little while ago. You lied to me before." Lacey knew what was coming after that. She winced in anticipation but otherwise said nothing. "He told me that Jo came home a little after 12 o'clock last night and that she was drunk. Apparently, you and Danny dropped her off." Lacey stared blindly at the pattern on her comforter in an effort to control her breathing. "So, I'm going to ask you again," her mother began with almost eerie calm, "Where were you last night, Lacey?"

"I spent the night alone with Danny in his room," she confessed in a mumble, "But all we did was talk and sleep! That's the whole story. I swear it!"

"You've already lied to me once and I can't help but wonder why."

"What do you want me to say?"

"Are you having sex with Danny Desai?" Judy demanded bluntly.

"What?"

"I need to know the truth."

"I can't believe you just asked me that! No! _No!_ He's my _friend_!"

"Don't lie to me, Lacey!"

"I'm not lying! I have a boyfriend, Mother! God!"

"What else am I supposed to think? One night with this boy and you're already staying out all night, ignoring my calls and lying to me. I don't like the influence he's having on you."

"Well, I don't like a lot of the life choices that you've made either," Lacey spat bitterly, "But I guess _I_ have to live with those!"

Lacey was still smarting from that realization long after her mother left. With her phone calls and social media being closely monitored, Lacey had no way of getting in contact with Danny or Jo. Her mother was more than willing to let her converse with anyone else, but Danny and Jo were completely out of the question. According to Judy, "the three of them together could not be trusted." Lacey tried to soothe her increasingly frazzled nerves with a shower and later by cleaning and rearranging her room but she remained as agitated as before. Her afternoon passed with mind-numbing sluggishness. Around three o'clock she finally decided to preoccupy herself with homework when Clara abruptly popped her head inside Lacey's bedroom.

"Wow..." Clara whistled, "When you finally decide to do something, you do it big, huh?"

Not the least bit amused, Lacey wagged an accusing finger at her. "This is your fault. 'Talk to him,' you said. 'Fix it,' you said. I can't believe I took advice from a twelve year old."

Clara lifted her shoulders in an unapologetic shrug. "It worked, didn't it? It's not my fault you decided to lose your mind and spend the whole night with him!"

Lacey flopped back onto her bed with a heavy groan of consternation. "What do you want, Clara?"

"You have a visitor." That announcement had Lacey popping upright again. But before she could brighten with hope and excitement, Clara added sadly, "It's not Danny. It's Archie."

Shortly after donning a pair of socks and a light jacket, Lacey stepped out onto her front porch to greet him. Archie was pacing the length of their porch in frantic circles but, when she emerged from the house, he stopped short. Before she could say a word he yanked her into his arms and hugged her hard. Lacey stiffened initially but then tentatively returned his embrace.

"I'm sorry for last night," he mumbled into her neck, "I was a jerk to you."

"Yeah, you were," she agreed.

He leaned back to frame her face in his hands and pressed his forehead to hers. "You want to wait. Fine. Wait. I'll wait with you. I don't care," he vowed, "Just don't pull another stunt like you did last night."

"I wasn't trying to worry anyone on purpose. I didn't have my phone."

"Sarita told me that you had another fight with Regina. At first, I figured you were blowing off steam but then your mom called me and I started to panic."

"Yeah, she's completely flipping out about it. She took my cell away and everything."

"Where did you go?"

"I...I mostly just drove around town all night," she lied in nervous stammer, "I didn't go any place in particular."

Archie pressed an earnest kiss to her lips. "Listen, I know you've been having a hard time lately and I probably didn't help by putting more pressure on you last night. I'm not that guy, Lacey. I don't want to goad you into sleeping with me. I want you to want it like I want it. Just tell me what you need and I'll do it."

Lacey shut her eyes briefly with a weary sigh. "Archie, it's not like I'm waiting for this magical moment."

"But you kinda are," he pointed out, "You keep saying that you want it to 'feel right.' Well, what does that even mean?"

"I'm not sure," she said, "But I'll know it when I feel it."

He gathered her into his arms and nuzzled a kiss across the tip of her nose. "When you do will you let me know? Cause I'd like to jump on that as soon as possible."

"I'll just bet you would." He started to lower his head for a deeper kiss when the front door suddenly yawned open. Lacey and Archie scattered in opposite directions and pivoted to regard her mother with varying degrees of guilt and embarrassment.

Lacey leveled her mother with a frosty glower. "What? Is my time up now, warden?"

"Sweetheart, I need to tell you something," Judy informed her somberly, "There's been a tragedy. Something awful has happened."

The grim tremor in her mother's tone obliterated Lacey's anger and simultaneously filled her with dread. "What is it? What happened?"

"It's Regina. Kyle Masterson just called. Their housekeeper found her this afternoon. She's dead, Lacey."


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

Danny drew a shaky hand through the loosened waves of his hair as he sat on the sofa in his living room, staring blindly at the television screen. He wasn't surprised when Lacey didn't call him by the afternoon like she promised. He'd expected as much. By now she was likely aware of what he had known since approximately 4 a.m. that morning. Regina Crane was dead.

It was splashed all over the television. The story had been running on a loop since the 11 o'clock news but it had been a breaking story well before then. _Green Grove High School student found bludgeoned to death in her home in apparent robbery._ The news anchor never announced the victim's name. That was being kept under wraps for now. But Danny knew with certainty who the victim was and _how_ she had died.

With a sort of disconnected calm, he had been waiting for the better part of the morning for Kyle Masterson to arrive at his front door with a slew of officers in tow to arrest him for murder. He couldn't imagine how he wouldn't become the prime suspect in their investigation. After all, he had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and it was rather inevitable that fact would catch up with him eventually.

When Danny had made the decision to sneak from his bedroom last night and confront Regina Crane about the threatening text message she had sent him he had never imagined the morning would end like it did. Having no choice but to travel to her home on foot, Danny had arrived at Regina's house shortly after 3:30 a.m. He had prudently decided to jog around to the back in an effort to remain as inconspicuous as possible. Once there, his intention to knock was aborted when he discovered that the back door to the Crane home was slightly ajar.

In hindsight, Danny realized that was probably the moment when he should have left. He should have turned on his heel and gotten out of there as fast as he could. But he didn't. Instead, he had pushed the door open and tentatively called out for Regina as he ventured deeper into the silent house. When he glimpsed the specter of a masked man dashing from the Crane living room, Danny had instinctively given chase.

His impulsive choice had ended in a brief struggle with the assailant. There had been one distinct moment when the attacker had paused in the act of choking him and Danny could have sworn he saw recognition flash in the man's eyes. It had been only a brief second of hesitation before he abruptly pulled back and whacked Danny hard against the side of the head. Stars burst before Danny's eyes in brilliant pulses of light as the assailant backed up several steps, stooped to make a blind grab for something Danny's couldn't make out and then took flight. In the aftermath, Danny had struggled to remain conscious in the wake of that ringing blow. He had watched with bleary eyes as the masked man made his escape and disappeared into the night.

It had taken him a few moments after that to regain his bearings. He had been dizzy and uncoordinated and very close to passing out. A fuzzy inspection of the lateral portion of his skull revealed that no skin had been broken but the strike had been substantial enough to leave quite a goose-egg that was incredibly tender to the touch.

Once he had regained his bearings a little, Danny had staggered through the house, calling for Regina again and again, his heart pumping with renewed dread each time his calls went unanswered. He discovered her broken body in her living room a short time later, lying in a twisted, macabre contortion of limbs on the floor, a trickling pool of fresh blood congealing beneath her head. Her blue eyes were fixed ahead in a dead stare. Her neck was obviously broken. Danny evoked every ounce of willpower he had not to throw up right then and there.

Afterwards, he had been left with an extremely difficult choice. Any other person in his position would have immediately called 911 and been hailed a hero for his bravery in facing a dangerous criminal. But he wasn't anyone else. He was Danny Desai, convicted murderer and resident sociopath. There was no way he would be able to plausibly explain away how he had ended up at Regina Crane's home in the early morning hours and she had ended up dead without drawing skepticism and suspicion. They would send him directly back to lock up, no questions asked.

In the end, Danny had done the only thing he could do. He left the scene. He returned home and he showered vigorously and he tried to put the image of Regina Crane's vacant stare out of his mind. He had climbed into bed and pulled Lacey into his arms, even though he had known he shouldn't, because he'd been absolutely sure it would be his last and only opportunity to hold her. And then, after what seemed like an eternity, he finally managed to fall asleep.

Now, however, he was wide awake and his mind was careening in a thousand different directions. He couldn't help but obsess over all the possible evidence he'd inadvertently left behind at the crime scene. His fingerprints were all over the back door. He had moved the body in a futile attempt to check for a pulse. Whatever the hell that man had hit him with was probably still back at that house. Any forensic expert worth his salt would be able to place Danny at the Crane house with relative ease. He was going to go back to prison...and not kiddie prison this time either. This time, it was going to be the real deal.

Danny drew his knees against his chest, wanting to weep with despair over the prospect of returning to that hell. But he found that he didn't have the tears to shed. He was too numb and too stunned that he had even found himself in such a position at all. He was so lost in his abject misery that he didn't even hear the doorbell ring or register the arrival of visitors until his mother placed her hand on his shoulder. He angled a startled look up at her.

"Jo's here."

Danny rolled off of the couch and shuffled into the foyer, surprised and a little speechless to find Jo and Rico standing there. He ignored Rico's presence entirely for the time being and focused solely on Jo. "Does your dad know where you are right now?" he blurted in greeting.

"Wow, someone's grumpy. Hey to you too, Desai."

"Jo, I'm serious here."

"He thinks I'm studying with Rico," she said, "I got it covered."

Rico bobbed a nod. "And since I refuse to be party to a lie because that just starts a whole downward spiral of mistrust and deceit that could very well lead to an unsatisfying life of crime, violence and drug abuse," the aforementioned rambled nonsensically, "I decided to come with her and then we're going to study at Johnnycakes later."

"Right...okay." Danny turned to regard Jo with a bewildered expression. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see if you were okay," she said, and when his expression remained puzzled, she added, "I know about Lacey. I know she stayed over with you last night. Her mom called my dad this morning and was talking about trying to get a restraining order against you."

Danny dropped his head forward with a low groan. "You're kidding me." He knew it was bad but he hadn't realized it was "petition for a restraining order" bad. "Did she put one in place?" he asked gruffly.

"My dad managed to talk her down but, Judy Porter is _really_ pissed off right now."

"I kind of got that impression after she told me if I ever called Lacey again she was contacting the police. I didn't think she'd really make good on the threat though. This is the same woman who used to babysit me when I was a kid! It was unreal."

Jo winced. "I'll bet. Yikes."

"What about Lacey?" Danny followed up anxiously, "Have you talked to her? How is she doing?"

"I don't know. When I called, her mom wouldn't let me speak to her. She was polite but, really firm. She says that Lacey and I are 'contributing to each other's bad judgment' or whatever that means," Jo mumbled, "Basically, I'm persona non grata at the Porter house right now."

"Sorry about that, Jo," Danny muttered, "I know you're trying to fix things with Lacey too and now that's shot to hell. It's me that Mrs. Porter is mad at but she's taking it out on you."

"What exactly happened last night, Danny?" Jo asked, "I feel like I woke up this morning and the entire world had turned upside down. My parents are pissed off. Lacey's mom is pissed off. _You're_ pissed off. What the hell did we do?"

"You mean you don't remember? Jell-O shots? The saddest attempt at twerking I've ever witnessed? Singing _Lean on Me_ at the top of your lungs in the back of Lacey's car?"

Jo was aghast. "I didn't."

"Yeah, you did."

"I remember waking up this morning feeling like I wanted to die," Jo recounted, "My head was pounding. My dad said that you and Lacey dropped me off last night but I don't really remember anything."

"Oh, you were in rare form, Masterson," Danny told her, "You basically told Lacey and me that we were being idiots and that we needed to get over ourselves and make up already."

"And did you?" Jo prompted softly.

"We were starting to get there, I think but...things are really complicated now."

"More than you know," Jo added grimly. She paused a beat before she added, "I don't know if you've heard already but it's all over Twitter. That girl who was killed in the home invasion last night? Everyone is saying it was Regina Crane. My dad pretty much confirmed it was her, unofficially of course."

Danny did his best not to fidget guiltily. "Yeah, I heard. Lacey must be devastated. I know that she and Regina were pretty close."

Rico chose that moment to chime in as well. "The whole community has come to a standstill," he said, "Things like that just don't happen here! I mean, the last time there was a murder in Green Grove, it was when..." He trailed off into silence when he realized belatedly where his line of thought was going.

Despite his clumsy attempt as sensitivity, Danny finished the thought for Rico. "You were saying that the last time there was a murder in Green Grove, it was when Tara Desai was killed. When _I_ killed her. And now there's been yet another murder and only a week after convicted killer Danny Desai was released from prison. What are the odds?"

Jo reached over to place a steadying hand on his forearm. "Danny, Rico isn't accusing you of anything."

Danny shook off her touch. "Maybe he's not," he acknowledged tightly, "But someone eventually will. It's only a matter of time."

Hoping to make up for his earlier verbal faux paus, Rico said, "Look at the bright side, they need actual evidence to convict you for murder and since you're innocent everything should work out okay."

"Yeah, everything should work out," Danny echoed without much conviction. He nibbled at the corner of his mouth, carefully constructing his words and tone before he asked Jo with deceptive casualness, "Does your dad have any leads on the case yet?"

"He doesn't usually talk about his cases with me and my mom," Jo replied, "The only reason he said something this time was because he knew Regina went to school with me and was friends with Lacey. Other than that, I know what you know. Regina was killed in a robbery gone bad."

Danny was privy to a few more details than that. He knew that the authorities would probably be selective in what information they leaked to the media. They were already doing it. The official story being circulated was that the young victim had been beaten to death but Danny knew the truth...and so did the killer. Regina's neck had been broken and she had very likely died instantly as a result of her injury.

There had been a jagged gash on her forehead approximately 2 inches long. It had looked deep but Danny had noted that the bleeding wasn't as profuse as most head injuries. He suspected the laceration might have happened postmortem and was sustained when her head clipped the edge of the coffee table as she fell to the floor. Those were vivid details that only someone who had been present at the crime scene would know. The police would expect that from the killer, therefore, Danny realized he had to be selective about what he said from that point onward.

The knowledge left Danny feeling drained and defeated. It was yet another secret he would be forced to keep and yet another barrier created between him and the people he loved. That truth made it increasingly difficult for him to be around Jo right then because he hated lying to her, especially when she had shown him nothing but unwavering support. It was a forceful reminder to Danny of all the reasons he had cut off contact with her and Lacey in the first place. They deserved better than the half truths, evasions and outright lies that he could give them.

Unable to bear the saturating shame and guilt another second, Danny said suddenly, "Well, thanks for stopping by, Jo. I don't want to keep you and Rico from your plans."

Jo scowled at him. "Is that your _really_ not so subtle way of kicking me out of here?"

"I've already caused enough friction between you and your folks. I...just..." He blew out a heavy sigh. "Maybe you should keep your distance from me for a while until everything settles."

She stared at him blankly. "Yeah...that's not even going to happen."

"I'm trying not to make more problems for you, okay!" Danny exploded shortly, "Your parents already have enough reasons to hate me. I don't want to give them new ones!"

"I'm not worried about them right now," Jo argued, "I'm worried about _you_."

"As you can see, I'm fine, Jo," Danny replied in a light tone that belied the turmoil churning inside of him right then, "Go study."

"Danny, I know you're blaming yourself for everything that's happening with Lacey and me and I know you're disappointed. It seems like you and Lacey were just starting to make some progress and then everything turns to crap. First with her mom and then with Regina."

Rico surveyed her with a chastising, sideways glance. "Yeah, how inconvenient of Regina Crane to _die_ right now. I mean...how could she be so selfish?"

Jo rolled her eyes with a light huff of aggravation. "You know what I mean," she sighed before turning to address Danny with her next statement. "This has to be frustrating for you. You take one step forward and then it's three steps back again."

Danny shoved his hands deep into his pockets. He ducked his head, which caused his unbound hair to fall forward and conceal his broken expression. "It's okay, Jo," he murmured, "Everything will work out the way it's supposed to work out. In the meantime, it would probably be better if I gave Lacey her space. She needs some time to process."

"I'm going to try and call her when I get to Johnnycakes, see if I can convince her mom to let us talk," Jo said, "Any particular message you want me to pass along?"

 _I miss you._ _I need you. I can't stop thinking about you. Nothing makes sense without you here._ Danny left those thoughts unvoiced. Instead, he said, "Tell her I hope to see her soon."

He watched Jo and Rico leave, waiting until they had disappeared from view completely before he moved to shut the front door. When he swiveled around, however, he nearly jumped out of his skin to find his mother standing there. He pressed a hand to his thumping heart. "Good grief, Mother! Do you have to creep up on me like that?"

Unfazed by his snappy demeanor, Karen Desai regarded her son in thoughtful silence. "I'm glad to see you're spending time with Jo again," she remarked softly, "I hardly recognized her when she showed up at the door. She's become such a beautiful young woman." She let that compliment settle before she added, "So has _Lacey_. Though I wasn't able to get as good a look at her."

Her knowing tone was obvious. Danny crossed his arms in impatient expectation. "Spit it out, Mother."

"I saw Lacey coming out of your room early this morning," Karen said, "She snuck out of here like a little thief. I might have missed her completely if I hadn't been up since dawn for Pilates."

"Right. I forgot about your fitness regimen. You're nothing if not faithful to that."

Karen ignored the implicit criticism in his tone and forced a bright smile, keeping her tone conversational when she said, "So, Lacey spent the night with you?"

"Yep."

"In your room."

"Uh-huh."

"In your bed?"

He wasn't fooled by the unassuming nature of her question. She was fairly bludgeoning him to death with each statement she made. Finally, Danny sighed in exasperation, "Nothing happened, Mother. We talked. We slept. She left. That's it."

"Danny, the sleepovers were all very cute and innocent when you and Lacey were six," his mother argued, "But now you're _sixteen_. The same rules don't apply. I'm not sure if it's appropriate anymore."

"Are you seriously lecturing me on what is and isn't appropriate?"

Karen regarded him with a taut expression. "I'm still your mother."

"That's a question of DNA, not maternal instincts!" he retorted, "Besides, you've chosen the wrong subject to go all parental over. It's not like that between me and Lacey. We've only just started to be friends again _and_...she has a boyfriend. This discussion is moot."

"That's not the point, Danny."

"Then what _is_ the point?" he demanded irritably.

Karen cleared her throat several times, her fair cheeks blooming with color as she fumbled for the right words. At last, she said, "You were very young when you were sent away to Huntington. There were a lot of...a lot of things that you never had an opportunity to experience or discuss and...and I think it's time that we do that. We should have a discussion."

"What on earth are you talking about?"

"The birds and the bees, Danny."

" _The birds and the bees_?" he echoed incredulously, "What am I? Five? You're kidding me right now." He could feel a migraine coming. The longer he spoke to her, the more his head pounded.

Steadfast, Karen pressed on in spite of his derision and lack of interest. "We should..." She stumbled again, closing her eyes in a brief bid for courage before she forged on. "We should talk about sex, Daniel. I think it's time."

Danny dragged all ten of his fingers through his disheveled hair. "I can't believe this is happening right now," he muttered under his breath.

"I know the last thing you want to do is talk about sex with your mother, but-,"

"-Mother, this is unnecessary! I know all about sex!" Danny interrupted stridently, "First of all, just because I haven't had it before, that doesn't mean I'm completely ignorant! Second of all, I'm not having sex with Lacey but even if I were...you and I are _not_ going to talk about it!"

"I'm not talking about what you learned from those god-awful hooligans you served with, Danny!" Karen retorted, "I mean the two of us sitting down and engaging in an honest, respectful discussion about sexual intimacy between two people who love each other."

"Dad already had that discussion with me when I was ten," Danny bit back stiffly, "Perhaps you missed it because you were upstairs passed out drunk that night."

Karen reacted to that as if he'd physically slapped her. Her large, blue eyes brimmed with tears but she managed to maintain her poise. "Alright then," she conceded thickly, "Why don't we address this resentment you obviously still harbor towards me instead?"

"What do you want me to say?" Danny asked in a weary tone, "You've been checked out on me for most of my childhood."

"But I'm trying now, sweetheart! Can't you see that I'm making an effort?"

"Yes, I can. I can see that."

She slumped forward as her tears spilled over. "But it's not enough, is it?"

If Danny thought he hated himself before that moment, his mother's quiet weeping only tripled the self-loathing eating its way through his heart. When he spoke again, his words had lost most of their edge and anger. "I'm screwed up, Mother," he told her softly, "I'm very screwed up and... I'm never going to be able to give you what you want. The sooner you accept that, the sooner we can find some way to exist together without so much tension."

"What is it that you think that I want, Danny?"

"A normal son. A _good_ son. An honest and decent son and I am _none_ of those things and I never will be!"

Karen stepped forward to cup his cheek, tenderly brushing away the lone tear that had spilled down his cheek. "I don't want any of those things," she told him, "All I want is for you to let me be your mother."

Danny stared at her with a torn expression, suddenly wishing and wanting to unburden himself of every bit of pain he had been carrying for nearly the entirety of his life. There was a scared, little boy inside of him that yearned for his mother's love and needed the stability that love could provide. He wanted to believe that Karen was capable of giving him what he needed, that it was possible for her to undo the years of psychological damage she'd wrought with her neglect but the reality of his situation and hers could not be ignored. She was still a broke, unskilled, jobless and disgraced socialite who drank too much and knew next to nothing about raising a teenage boy. And he would always be seen as a conscienceless killer and an ex-convict. They could never be a real family. That time had come and gone long ago.

Frustrated with himself, her and his entire life situation in general, Danny shook off her hand and turned away. "I think the best that we can hope for is amicable coexistence at this point," he told her, "and you'll only have to deal with that until I'm eighteen and then I'm out of here."

"You can't keep shrouding yourself in anger and resentment, Danny," his mother warned, "Like it or not, I _am_ your mother. I've been with you since your beginning. I know you better than you think. You're too angry with me to let yourself even believe that we can be better than this. You're scared to trust me and I understand that. But I promise you, if you try, if trust me again, I won't let you down."

"That's not going to happen. I've gotten this far without you mothering me, Karen," he said, deliberately using her first name as a means to emphasize his disconnection from her, "I'm fairly sure I can manage from this point forward." Suddenly inundated with the need to get out of there, Danny crossed over to the coat closet to grab his jacket and shrug into it.

"Where are you going?" Karen demanded when he headed to the door, "Danny, it will be dark soon!"

"I'm going for a walk," he answered curtly, "I've had enough 'family togetherness' for one day."

One hour later, Danny found himself navigating his way through the dense brush and scattered autumn leaves that marked the path towards the old fort that had been his refuge and hideaway for more than half his life. Many, many times over the course of those years he had gone there to escape, to think and to cry. Rarely had he ever had to go alone, however. Either Jo or Lacey had always been in tow, most of the time it had been both of them. The three of them had shored one another up in a quasi-normal family arrangement. Of course, of the three of them, Jo was the only one to have a non-dysfunctional family unit. Consequently, most of what Danny and Lacey knew about close knit family dynamics, they had learned directly from Jo.

When Danny thought of home then, he often thought of that ramshackle fort because it was there that he had felt loved. It was there that he felt safe. He suspected it had been the same for Lacey. Which was why he was startled but not completely surprised when he arrived at the fort and found her already there, as if she had been waiting for him. She sat perched on the makeshift stoop before the pit, gathering together broken twigs and dried leaves in preparation to make a fire. She glanced up at his entry and even in the dwindling sunlight it was clearly evident that she had been crying.

Before he could even find the words to formulate a greeting she was on her feet and closing the distance between them. He wasn't wholly prepared for the moment when she flung her arms around his neck and hugged him hard but, when she did, Danny didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around her and return her embrace. They held onto one another so tightly that there was no space left between them, clinging to each other like two castaways stranded on a life raft in the middle of turbulent seas. It was the first time they had hugged in more than five years and neither Danny nor Lacey had realized how profoundly starved they had been for the contact until they finally had it again.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lacey finally lifted her face from the crook of Danny's neck and gradually extricated herself from his arms. "Sorry," she mumbled gruffly, unable to meet his eyes, "I don't know where that came from."

Danny's words were husky with emotion when he replied, "I'm not complaining."

Lacey cleared her throat, taking yet another step back from him as if she did not trust herself to be too close. "I guess you heard about Regina, huh?"

"Jo came by the house earlier. She said her dad confirmed that it was Regina." He reached out to brush away the salty remnants of tears that continued to cling to Lacey's cheeks. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Lace. What can I do?"

"You're doing it. You're here."

"That was a fluke. I had a fight with my mom and I came out here to clear my head. I didn't know you'd be here."

"I knew _you_ would be here." Danny's eyes flared wide in surprise. "I spoke to Jo earlier. My mother has lifted the ban provided we are supervised when we are together. Anyway, she told me that you seemed a little squirrely with her when she spoke to you earlier today."

He squinted at her. "What do you mean squirrely?"

"You know how you get. It's your big, manly routine of 'I gotta pull away from you for your own good,'" Lacey clarified in a mocking impression of him, "She said she figured you would run out here to lick your wounds and I agreed. First chance I got, I snuck out of the house."

"That's not going to sit well with your mom."

Lacey shrugged. "At this point, it can't get any worse." She crossed the fort to resume her earlier seat and made a space for Danny to fill beside her. She patted the empty spot. "Get over here."

He complied, his lips curving in a small smile that was altogether too brief. "So how are you holding up with everything?"

"It feels like a dream," she said, "Like it's not even real. I just saw her yesterday. We had this stupid fight and I wasn't even talking to her. It all seems so petty now."

"What were you fighting about?"

Lacey favored him with a bittersweet, sideways smile. "You." He favored her with a darting glance filled with astonishment. "She wanted to get you into bed, Danny."

He scratched behind his ear in a purely self-conscious gesture. "Yeah, I...uh...picked up on that."

"The idea didn't thrill me," Lacey confessed, "and we had words about it."

Danny digested that with a small grunt, his curiosity and his ego stroked by her admission. "Am I not supposed to wonder why the idea of me and Regina hooking up bothered you so much?" he asked softly.

"No. You are not."

The reserved pitch in her reply and her facial expression made it clear that she had no intention of elaborating. Given his own secrets, Danny respectfully decided not to push her. "Point taken." A pregnant pause ensued between them as they both struggled with saying the things they wanted to say but could not find the courage to voice. Finally, when he could no longer bear the silence without fidgeting, Danny asked, "Am I allowed to know how you and Regina became friends at least?"

"Oh, that's easy," Lacey replied with a nostalgic smile, "We met at this birthday party when we were in eighth grade. She made a typical mean girl remark about the dress I was wearing and then she and her friends started to tease me. But instead of bursting into tears and running away, I got angry. I stood up to them all and told Regina exactly what I thought of her.

"She was weirdly impressed with that," she continued, "After I was finished ranting, she announced that she was going to be my friend, like she was doing me this incredible favor or something. We were pretty much inseparable from that point on."

"Wow...sounds like a real solid foundation for friendship there, Lace."

Lacey smothered a giggle at his blatant sarcasm. "Okay, I know it sounds superficial on the surface but Regina really helped me not to focus so much on the things I couldn't change," she explained, "We got each other through some pretty rough times."

"You mean like her father's suicide?"

She cut him a sharpened glance. "She told you about that?"

"It wasn't like she broke down into uncontrolled sobs or anything," Danny scoffed, "She was pretty flippant about it actually."

"That sounds like Regina. But I know for a fact that she took her father's death really hard. Truthfully, the only way to know if Regina was really hurting about something would be how indifferent she acted afterwards. The more apathetic she was, the bigger her heartbreak. _But_ ," Lacey added with a fond chuckle, "I'm willing to lay odds that she would have played the 'we both have dead fathers so let's commiserate' card if she thought it would help her get you into bed. She didn't have a drop of shame in her at all."

"Is that what you liked about her?"

"I liked that she kept me from taking myself too seriously," Lacey said, "In an odd way, she grounded me and it was kind of like what you and Jo used to do for me before...before..."

"You mean before I went to prison and Jo went crazy," Danny finished for her quietly.

"Yeah...that."

Danny swept up a fallen twig from the ground and began idly tracing patterns in the dirt, his brow creased with a pensive frown. "Can I ask you something that might offend you?"

Lacey groaned. "That's never a good way to begin a question but, sure...go ahead."

"Okay, so I get why you washed your hands of me," he began carefully, "I pretty much cut you and Jo out of my life after I was sent away to Huntington. But, I don't understand why you gave up on Jo. I mean, I know she was sick and I know that must have been stressful for you but I can't understand why you had to completely turn your back on her. She needed you."

"I didn't give up on Jo," Lacey replied without censure, " _She's_ the one who gave up." Danny surveyed her with a puzzled look. "She didn't tell you, did she?"

"Tell me what?"

"Jo attempted suicide when we were thirteen. She almost died. She spent nearly two months in a mental ward after that. It was awful."

"Are you serious?" Danny balked, swallowing down the sudden bile that rose in his throat. "Please tell me that wasn't because of me."

"You can't blame yourself, Danny. What happened with you might have been the catalyst for everything but Jo made the decision," Lacey sighed, "I lost it after she did that. I knew that if I didn't do something different then I was going to end up exactly like her. I just didn't want to be unhappy anymore."

"I didn't know that."

Noting the descending darkness, Lacey shifted to her knees to get the fire going. Danny moved to assist her and they continued their conversation while they worked. "Why would you have known?" she asked him, "It's not something either of us was eager to tell. I know Jo has regrets about it and so do I."

The fire crackled to life, illuminating Danny's features in a warm, orange glow. "What kind of regrets, Lace?"

"I _do_ feel like I abandoned her," Lacey confessed gruffly, "I live with that every day. In hindsight, I can see where I could have made better choices but I can't do anything about it now. She's always going to remember that I dumped our friendship after she was released from the psych ward. And no matter how much progress we make, I know that's always going to be between us and I hate it."

"I know what that feels like," Danny commiserated, his dark eyes brimming with emotion, "It's the same regret I feel for not answering your letters all those months, especially now when I know what you guys went through because of me. I feel guilty and sad and angry...mostly at myself...because I didn't make better choices and we all suffered for it."

Lacey reached over the pile of leaves and twigs between them to take his hand. She laced her fingers with his. "You know that Jo and I aren't going to turn our backs on you now, right? You're stuck with us so you gotta deal."

Danny shook his head in mournful consternation. "You don't need to be worried about me right now, Lace. Your friend just died. You need to grieve."

"You're my friend too."

He met her eyes with fervid intensity. Their limpid, amber depths burned brightly in the firelight. "Lacey, what if I told you that I want more than that...that I want _more_ than to be your friend? What would you say?"

She rolled away from him with a dismayed whimper and shifted to her feet. "Danny, don't."

Detecting the note of anger in her voice, Danny immediately tried to backpedal. "You're right. I'm sorry," he burst out, "I shouldn't have said that. I'm not trying to upset you."

Lacey stabbed him with an accusing glare. "You promised me that you wouldn't do this again!"

"No, I promised I wouldn't try to _kiss_ you again and I haven't," he clarified quickly, "I was only asking a question, Lacey."

"Well, do you?" she pressed.

"Do I what?"

She made a wild, exasperated gesture with her hands. "Do you want to be more than my friend?"

He tipped back his head to favor her with a bittersweet, lopsided smile. "Lacey, I have wanted more than friendship with you since I was eleven years old," he whispered, "I don't think that's ever going to change. So I guess the real question is...what do _you_ want?"


	11. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

By Monday morning Regina Crane's murder had become widely known throughout the community. Every student in Green Grove High was speculating about the circumstances surrounding her death and when Danny Desai reported for homeroom that morning he harbored zero doubts that he was at the top of everyone's suspect list. As it had been the norm for the past week, upon his entry all conversation within the classroom ground to an abrupt halt. But, as he moved past the rows of his classmates on the way to his seat, Danny noted genuine fear of him reflected in their eyes whereas before he had seen more intolerance than actual fear. The realization only further soured his already surly disposition.

Following his disheartening conversation with Lacey the night before, Danny's woes had steadily increased from bad to worse. He only had himself to blame. He should have shown better judgment than to press Lacey for an answer regarding her feelings for him. That she was attracted to him couldn't be denied though Lacey did a fabulous job of pretending. Desire crackled between them every time they were in the same room together. Exploring that attraction might have been a natural next step if he had been anyone other than who he was.

His past couldn't be ignored and would likely always remain an obstacle between them. Lacey had been rather forthright about her misgivings. She wanted to remain friends, not because she didn't want him but because she couldn't risk her heart by being with him. She had given him a rather involved list of all the reasons why she thought they would be better off as friends but, at the end of the day, the bottom line was that she was scared. She couldn't trust him, not completely. And, if she couldn't trust him then she couldn't certainly couldn't let herself fall for him either.

Danny couldn't argue with her reasoning either. There was still so much that Lacey didn't know about him, things he absolutely could _not_ tell her. Eventually those secrets would tarnish their bond with mistrust and suspicion and inevitably choke out all the good in their relationship. He was already risking losing her as a friend with the lies that were between them now. He certainly couldn't take the chance of her becoming _more_ to him and risking that as well.

In the reasoning part of his brain, Danny acknowledged all of that, agreed with all of that and yet Lacey's rejection had still left him miserable. In spite of the assured disaster that would come with pursuing a romantic relationship with Lacey Porter, he still wanted to do it. He still wanted her. He would always want her.

By the time he and Lacey said their goodbyes and he returned home that night, Danny was a virtual hotbed of frustration, anger and sorrow. Being greeted by various family pictures of himself, his father and mother _and_ his deceased aunt put him over the edge. Those photos were such a severe contrast with the reality that had been his home life. The Desai family had always been very adept at putting up an outward front of being the perfect family but it had been nothing but a hollow veneer. None of it had ever been real and those photographs only perpetuated an ongoing lie. Danny had reached a point where he could no longer tolerate it.

He had been in the middle of ripping the portraits off the walls and smashing them with whatever he could find when his mother came running into the living room, screaming at him hysterically to stop. For an instant, it had been like having an out of body experience. He could imagine how the scene must have looked like to her from the outside...his hair falling across his face in wild disarray, his eyes feral and unfocused, his fingers dripping with blood from the cuts he'd sustained during his rampage, the room strewn with shattered glass, jagged bits of destroyed picture frames and torn photographs. Danny hadn't even realized the extent of the damage until he stopped.

With his anger expended, Danny had managed to collect himself and apologize in the aftermath. He had even cleaned up the mess he made and promised to find a way to recompense his mother for the damages but by then the damage was done. His behavior had been sufficient enough to scare the absolute hell out of Karen. She had, once again, insisted that he see a psychologist which had, unavoidably, degenerated into another fight between them.

His hope that the morning would somehow get off to a better start had been dashed when he grabbed his backpack, opened the front door to begin his trek towards school and found Kyle Masterson standing on his porch. Danny's heart lurched at the sight of him. His first and most pertinent fear was that the chief had come to arrest him on suspicion of murder but, when he didn't note the presence of any other squad cars or officers in addition to the chief's disarmingly amiable smile, Danny relaxed...but only slightly.

Completely belying his internal agitation, Danny had leaned again the doorjamb to regard the older man with a remote expression. "Chief Masterson, to what do I owe this honor, sir?"

"Good morning, Danny. I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me."

"What kind of questions?"

"I understand you attended Regina Crane's party the other night."

"Yeah me and about four dozen other kids. But you know that already. Just like you know what I did _after_ the party. So why are we having this conversation?"

"My understanding from Judy Porter is that Lacey fell asleep while she was over here with you. That leaves for some unaccounted time."

Danny's lips thinned in an embittered line. "Of course it does."

"Now I've spoken to several witnesses who say that they saw you and Regina go off alone together and that, when you left the party later, you seemed upset."

"She was coming on to me," Danny had informed him flatly, "She dragged me into the kitchen and tried to kiss me. I told her I wasn't interested and I left. That's it."

"Can anyone corroborate your story?"

"Does it have to be corroborated? Are you questioning everyone who attended the party that night or am I just special?"

"I have every intention of interviewing everyone who was present that night," Chief Masterson said, "However, given your past, I need to scrutinize your involvement a bit more closely. I'm sure you understand that."

"I didn't kill Regina. I barely knew her."

"I'm not making any accusations. We're just two people having a casual conversation right now."

"Well then, if that's true and I'm _not_ under arrest right now, I really need to get going. Don't want to be late for school."

As Danny started to sidle around him and start down the walk, Kyle Masterson called after him, "Keep away from my daughter, Danny." He had turned back briefly to acknowledge the older man with inscrutable eyes when Masterson added, "She's been through enough. Leave her alone." As Danny turned aside and walked away without a backward glance, he promised, "We'll talk again soon, son."

Guilt and perspicacity could have easily compelled Danny to comply with Kyle Masterson's edict, especially in light of all he'd learned from Lacey the night before, but Jo clearly had other plans. He had been at his locker only a few seconds before she made her approach. "So..." she drawled out cheerfully, "How did it go with Lacey? Did you guys get a chance to talk?"

Rather than answering her question, Danny pivoted to face her and asked one of his own. "Did you know that your dad was coming to see me this morning?"

"He did?" At Danny's nod of confirmation, Jo bit out a scathing expletive. "No wonder he had my mom drive me to school this morning! What did he want?"

"To question me about Regina Crane's murder," he said, " _and_ to warn me away from you."

"He's being completely unreasonable right now," Jo scoffed, "He knows that you didn't have anything to do with Regina's death but he needs for you to be guilty just so he can feel justified in blocking our friendship! I can't believe how unfair he's being!"

"I don't think he's being unreasonable or unfair," Danny countered softly, "I don't blame him for wanting me to keep my distance. He has valid reasons for feeling like he does." Jo looked at him as if he'd just spontaneously started speaking another language. "Jo, Lacey told me about what happened with you..." he clarified quietly, "You know...about the suicide attempt..."

Jo dropped her head forward with an inaudible groan. "I can't believe she did that," she muttered, "It wasn't her place to say anything at all."

" _You_ should have told me," Danny stressed, "And she wasn't gossiping about you. She was talking about how crappy she felt for breaking your friendship after that. She carries a lot of guilt about it. And now that I know what happened to you, so do I."

She groaned anew. "I still wish she hadn't said anything. I don't like talking about it because it makes me feel ashamed," Jo said in a suffocated little voice, "I feel so stupid that it even happened and I definitely didn't want you to blame yourself."

"You shouldn't feel stupid or ashamed, Jo. You survived. You got past all of that pain, picked yourself up and moved on from it. That's really strong and really brave and I'm _really_ proud of you."

She lifted her eyes then, her lips turned up in a wry smile. "You always know just what to say, don't you, Desai?"

"Not always," he mumbled self-deprecatingly.

"Can I take that to mean your conversation with Lacey did not go well?"

As if on cue, Lacey came sauntering around the corner arm in arm with Archie Yates. He had his arm draped loosely around her shoulder while the two of them walked side by side and engaged in soft, laughing conversation. However, the instant Lacey spotted Jo and Danny in the corridor, her smile faltered and became tight with tension. It was impossible to miss the way she awkwardly avoided Danny's penetrating stare when she passed them by with a small wave directed at Jo. After she and Archie had disappeared from view, Jo rounded on Danny with a long-suffering eye roll.

"Okay, what was that about?"

He'd spent almost two minutes trying to convince Jo that he and Lacey had _not_ had another fight and, therefore, there was no reason for her to have an anxiety attack. Unfortunately, in the time he took trying to calm her down, he almost ended up being late for homeroom. His aggravation over the near tardy was only heightened when he found himself the recipient of numerous accusing glares upon his arrival. The situation gradually degenerated from that point and his day got steadily worse. What started as whispered rumors escalated to caustic remarks and finally outright allegations of guilt from his classmates. By the time lunch period was concluded, Danny was ready to ditch school altogether.

After the bell rang for fourth period, Danny stalked to his locker in order to throw in his books inside and get the hell out of there but he never made it that far. As soon as he flung open the metal door, he was stunned into complete immobility by what he found there. Lying atop his history book, with no plausible explanation for how it had gotten there, was his aunt Tara's necklace.

Danny reacted as if he'd just encountered a coiled rattlesnake. He slammed the door to his locker and jumped back with a startled cry. He managed to keep enough wits about him to cast a nervous glance around him for any inadvertent witnesses to his breakdown but, if there had been any, he wouldn't have had the composure to explain away his uncontrollable trembling. When he felt a little calmer, he slowly approached his locker again and opened the door.

The necklace remained, not at all an optical illusion like he had hoped. Danny reached a shaking hand forward to tentatively inspect the jewelry. As he did so, he noticed a tiny sliver of folded paper beneath it. Breath suspended, Danny plucked the note from beneath the necklace and read it. It contained four type written words: _This belongs to you_. Danny reflexively crushed the note and shoved it in his pocket before compulsively doing the same thing with the necklace.

He had no idea how either one had gotten into his locker but he knew very well how bad it looked. The last time he had seen that necklace it had been hanging around Regina's neck and now Regina was dead. He hadn't done anything wrong but that didn't change the fact that he looked extremely guilty. He already had a questionable past. It wouldn't take very much to convict him and Danny knew it. He had absolutely no idea why this was happening to him but he definitely knew he didn't want to go back to prison. He couldn't go back.

"I figured you were going to ditch."

Danny jumped at Lacey's quiet observation, taking a few extra seconds to calm himself before he closed his locker and swiveled to face her. "Shouldn't you be in class right now?" he wondered mildly.

"I wanted to see how you were doing." Because she was having difficulty looking directly at him, Lacey found herself looking everywhere except his face. As a result of her inability to meet his eyes, she became aware of the fresh cuts that were scattered across the backs of his hands and fingers. Without thinking, she swept up one of his hands to inspect it more closely. "Oh my god, what happened?"

"Do it yourself project gone wrong," he lied smoothly, tugging his hand away, "Apparently, I'm not as handy as I would like to think."

"It looks like you put your hand through a shredder."

Danny rolled his eyes at the exaggeration. "It's not that bad. I cleaned the cuts with antiseptic and Neosporin. In a week, I'll be good as new."

"Well...stay away from the DIY projects from here on out, okay," she teased, "It's definitely not your thing."

"I'll keep that in mind."

The fell into brief instant of silence while Lacey worked up the courage to address what had really compelled her to come looking for him. "I know what everyone in school is saying about you. It's completely ridiculous by the way."

"Not to them. A killer is a killer is a killer."

"But it's such a baseless accusation!" she argued vehemently, "You weren't anywhere near Regina's house when she was killed! People are just looking to make a conspiracy theory out of her death and they're using you to do it! It's infuriating!"

"Don't worry about me, Lace. I can handle it."

"Don't do that. Don't act like it doesn't suck when we both know that it does."

"You wanna know what _really_ sucks?" Danny countered softly, "You not talking to me again. You and me being right back where we started. That's what sucks, Lacey."

"We're talking now."

"Yeah, after you've practically ignored and avoided me all morning!"

"I didn't know what to say to you. It feels weird between us now."

"Maybe because we're pretending like we don't want each other," Danny charged in a low whisper, "It _should_ feel weird, Lace...and wrong."

"Oh, so does that mean you're willing to come clean about everything with your aunt?" Lacey challenged, "Because that's what I need, Danny. I need you to trust me completely and you won't do that."

"I _can't_ do that," he stressed fiercely.

"Then I guess we're at an impasse, aren't we?" Lacey whispered. The two regarded one another in stubborn, stony silence before Lacey eventually softened. "Listen, I didn't risk detention just to fight with you," she sighed, "I want to help. I know you're having a hard time today but, you shouldn't skip school. You're only going to make things worse for yourself."

"I've already done time for murder. What's a little truancy at this point?"

"I'm not kidding, Danny!"

He dropped his glib veneer with the tacit reprimand and regarded her with grim solemnity. "They're having that grief counseling thing for Regina in the auditorium this afternoon," he argued, "Everyone thinks I'm the reason she's dead! No one actually wants me there."

"I want you there." She nibbled at her upper lip in vulnerable uncertainty. "It's going to be hard today and...and I do better when you're around, Desai."

Danny favored her with a tiny, crooked smile. "Oh yeah? Since when?"

"Since always."

Disarmed by her candid reply, Danny was suddenly struck with the spontaneous desire to tell her the truth about what he knew about Regina's murder. She had been Regina's best friend and, if anyone deserved to hear the truth about that night from him, it was Lacey. He stepped forward and swept up her hands, tugging her closer to him. "Lacey, there's something I need to tell you and-,"

"Get your hands off my girl, DePsycho!" Lacey and Danny immediately lurched apart with the blustering intrusion of Archie Yates' sudden outburst. They turned to face him just as he made his insistent approach, his handsome features twisted with an angry scowl. He shoved Danny hard against the shoulder. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Danny immediately shoved him back and the two of them squared off in the middle of the hallway, contemptuously sizing one another up. With narrowed eyes, Danny raked him with a derisive glance. "Well, it's an age old tradition called conversation. It involves words and thoughtful phrases rather than caveman-like grunts, so I can see how that would be somewhat difficult for you to grasp."

Fists clenched and spoiling for a fight, Archie growled, "Oh, Socio, you're begging for it."

"And you're going to give it to me, Archie?" Danny challenged, "Just try it. I dare you."

Before Archie could take a step forward and take Danny up on his taunting invitation, Lacey quickly inserted herself between them before they could begin trading blows. "Stop it, both of you! Are you trying to get expelled?" she hissed and then she rounded on Archie with a deep scowl, "What's wrong with you? Why are you acting like such a jerk right now?"

"I gotta better question! Why do I walk out the bathroom and find this freak holding your hand?" Archie spat back.

"We were _talking_!"

"That's new to me! Since when do you talk to him?" Archie snapped, "Damn it, Lacey! You know what everybody is saying about him, right? They're saying he killed Regina!"

"That's absurd," Lacey uttered.

"Yeah, because he couldn't possibly be capable of murder," Archie retorted with dripping sarcasm.

Danny bit out a scornful laugh. "And exactly what motive could I have for murdering Regina Crane?"

"How the hell should I know? I'm not a psychopath like you!"

"No, you're just a freaking idiot!"

Lacey hurriedly braced her hands against Archie's chest when he would have surged forward. "Archie, stop it!" she cried, "You know how Regina died! It was a robbery! The police even said that her mother reported her necklace being stolen!" Neither Lacey nor Archie noticed Danny's guilty flinch because they were two embroiled in their fight to pay attention to him right then. He shoved his hand into his pocket, pressing the necklace deeper within.

"It's not some huge conspiracy, Archie! Stop accusing Danny and giving him a hard time!" Lacey declared hotly, "He didn't do anything wrong."

"Are you seriously defending this freak right now?"

"There's nothing to defend," Lacey replied softly, "He's not guilty. I'm not going to stand here and let you trash him for something he didn't do." Recognizing that she had now crossed over too far with her vehement defense of Danny to turn back, she decided to go the complete distance by saying, "And enough with the name-calling, okay? It's unnecessary and also pretty awful. He's not a psycho! He's not a freak! His name is Danny. Why don't you try using it for a change?"

Archie shook his head, staring at her as if she had become unrecognizable to him in that moment. "What the hell is this, Lacey? You're suddenly all about protecting him? What's with the 180? Last week you were claiming you didn't want a damn thing to do with him and now you're his new best friend?"

"Maybe Regina's death helped me realize that life is too short to hold grudges."

"Wow, that's screwed up, babe," Archie bit out in an embittered breath, "That's real screwed up. He kills your best friend and gets you to forgive him all in one fell swoop." He pinned Danny with a disgusted glare. "You're one sick bastard, you know that?" And then he looked back to Lacey, his expression a mixture of sadness, anger and concern. "You're making a huge mistake trusting him again. I hope you know what you're doing. I definitely hope you don't end up like his aunt...or Regina."

Lacey watched him walk away with a dismayed grunt, torn between calling him back and letting him go. She felt like she was being pulled in two directions, wanting to be a good and supportive girlfriend to Archie while also being compelled to maintain her loyalty to Danny. In the end, she settled with letting Archie walk away because she knew she couldn't give him what he wanted right then. She couldn't cut Danny out of her life. Lacey had reached a point where that wasn't even an option for her anymore.

Danny came to stand alongside her. He appraised her with a careful, sideways glance. "Well...that was...not so good."

"No. It wasn't," Lacey agreed gruffly.

"You gonna go after him?" It was the last thing he wanted her to do and, after everything that had taken place in the last twenty four hours, Danny was pretty sure he would punch his locker if she did. Still, he tried to maintain an outward show of indifference. When she shook her head in answer he almost slumped forward in relief.

"He's too pissed off right now. He needs some time to cool down."

"Why did you do that?" he wondered, "You know...put yourself out there with him for me?"

"Was I just supposed to stand by and listen to him falsely accuse you?" she demanded a little irritably.

"I don't mean it like that. I just know you're committing social suicide by associating with me, Lace."

Lacey dropped her eyes to contemplate the toe of her boot, biting her lip as she often did when she was disconcerted about something. "Yeah, well, there are more important things..." she mumbled.

"I probably didn't help the situation by goading him like I did."

She surveyed him with a tight grimace. "No, Danny, you didn't help."

Danny responded with an impudent shrug. "It was fun though."

Right then, Lacey couldn't decide if she was endeared by his smug impenitence or aggravated beyond belief by it. When she spoke again, however, it was clear that it was more of the latter. "Do you have to work really hard to create the trouble you do or does it just come naturally to you?"

"I'm pretty sure I have a talent for it. I think for anything you do, you should strive to the best." His glib rejoinder seemed to snap what was left of her thin thread of patience. Lacey started to sidle around him, evidently with the intention of leaving him standing there alone. Danny lightly caught hold of her forearm before she could walk away. "Lacey, I'm sorry. I'm not trying to make your life difficult."

"But you do," she ground out in frustration, "You make it so freaking complicated! And I keep coming back for more. Why is that, Danny?"

Acutely aware of the repressed attraction that sparked between them with her outburst, he whispered, "I don't know, Lace. You tell me."

The answer remained unspoken between them as she pulled her arm from his grasp and regarded him solemnly. "Are you going to ditch today or what?"

"Do you want me to stay?" he pressed softly.

"You already know that I do."

"Then I'll stay. For you."

When the time finally came for the grief assembly, Lacey sat with Sarita, Archie and his jock friends while Danny found a welcome space between Jo and Rico. There was lingering eye contact between him and Lacey as he passed her row but it wasn't enough to banish Danny's overall irritation that she had chosen to sit with Archie and his jock friends rather than with him and Jo. As a result of that irritation, Danny completely failed to note the tension that clearly lingered on between Lacey and Archie. Though they sat side by side they weren't touching. Archie was preoccupied with his friends and Lacey was doing her best not to look as miserable as she felt.

None of that really registered for Danny, however. All he knew was that the girl he wanted was spending time with another guy...and he didn't like it. By the time he dropped down into his own seat, Danny was scowling openly.

Jo surveyed him with an askance look, dividing her attention between him and her chemistry notes. "Why do you look like you want to punch someone?"

"Please don't let it be me," Rico muttered.

Danny angled a brooding glance back at Archie before slouching down into his seat with crossed arms. "That guy." He blew out a foul curse under his breath. "I hate that guy. She can sit with us! There's room! We have a complete row here! Why is she even with him right now?"

"Maybe because he's her boyfriend," Jo pointed out dryly, "Just a thought."

"He's a douchebag and he doesn't deserve her at all."

Jo took a brief moment to pass formula equations back and forth with Rico. "Well then, if you feel that strongly about it, why don't you do something to change it?"

Danny flicked her with a dour glance. "What makes you think I haven't, Jo?"

"Ah-ha," Jo murmured with dawned understanding, "And we've finally arrived at the reason why you're pouting like a three year old. Now it all makes sense."

He grimaced at the charge and then proceeded to pout even more when he made the denial, "I am not pouting!"

Rico leaned in close to mumble in aside, "Um...yeah, you kinda are." His reward for that was a withering glance. "Or...or you're not," he stammered in shaky amendment, "Minding my own business now."

Jo rapped Danny on the back of his knuckles with her pencil. He yelped and pulled his bruised hand close to his chest to nurse it. Jo remained unmoved by his dramatic mewling. "Stop being mean to Rico just because you're not getting your way," she chastised him, "This is how it goes for most normal people, Danny. You can't charm everyone into giving you what you want all the time. Sometimes you just gotta be patient and wait for what you want to come to you."

Her words drew a yearning stare from Rico but, his adoring looks mostly went unacknowledged as Jo returned her attention to her chemistry notes. Frustrated, he slumped down in his seat with a posture similar to Danny's. "Story of my freaking life..."

Danny darted him a look, noting for the first time the look of unrequited affection stamped all over Rico's face. It seemed that he and Jo's spastic friend had something in common after all. He offered his fist to Rico in an offer of solidarity. "Go on," he invited, "Park it, my friend." Rico cautiously bumped his fist to Danny's, his mouth turning up in a slow smile. Danny flicked a nod over towards a distracted Jo. "I get it," he commiserated, "It sucks when the girl you like is mostly oblivious. Even when she _stops_ being oblivious, somehow it's still gonna suck."

"Great. That's really good," Rico mumbled unhappily, "I've got so much to look forward to then."

"Well...the first step would be actually telling her how you feel..." Danny advised with furtive nods in Jo's vicinity.

Rico darted a look at Jo, studying her profile with a dopey, enamored smile before looking back at Danny and stating with absolute conviction, "Not on your life."

Following that, a tentative truce began to unfold between Danny and Rico. Having found an element of common ground, the two began to engage in stilted conversation while Jo mostly kept her nose buried in her textbook. There was still a good deal of discomfort between the two of them but, Rico was coming to see that as he spent more and more time in Danny Desai's presence, the guy actually seemed rather harmless. He was also quite likeable as well.

Danny chatted quietly with Rico while he waited for the assembly to begin, mostly ignoring the gossipy chatter that went on around him _about him_. Despite the somber occasion, the student body remained loud and unruly even after the guidance counselor, Ms. Kaplan, took her place on the stage. She patiently tried to explained the reason for the assembly over the melee but distracted conversation continued amongst the crowd. But when she began talking about the private counseling sessions available to any student who needed to come to terms with their grief, someone shouted out, "It might help if we weren't forced to go to school with her killer!" Almost immediately, a chaotic chatter began to rise up among the throng as various students began to throw out similar comments.

To her credit, Ms. Kaplan tried to reason with the students and redirect things positively by saying, "Students, we are not helping matters by entertaining baseless speculation. If anything it detracts attention from the young life that was taken away from us much too soon..." Reasonable though she was, her words of wisdom were inevitably drowned out by demands to remove Danny Desai from the school.

Lacey, Jo and Danny traded uncomfortable glances as the crowd grew more and more volatile. The three silently weighed amongst themselves the wisdom of remaining in hopes that the teachers could regain control or leaving before the situation truly got out of hand. In the end, the decision was taken out of their hands altogether. Just as Jo and Danny shifted to their feet to leave and Lacey started to follow suit, Kyle Masterson arrived with his deputies. At last, a hush fell over the assembly and, somehow, that quiet filled Danny with more dread than the deafening chanting had. He could feel all eyes present fall on him.

"Danny Desai," Kyle Masterson announced gruffly, "I'm going to need you to come with me."


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

As soon as the assembly dispersed, Lacey wasted no time making her way over to Jo. Before the spunky blonde could utter a single word, she plucked the Jo by the sleeve of her jacket and dragged her into the nearest bathroom. After checking every stall to ensure that they were, indeed, alone, she then proceeded to round on Jo unrepressed panic. "What just happened out there?" she demanded, "What the hell was your dad thinking? Is Danny under arrest right now?"

"I don't know! I don't know!" Jo cried, "I got blindsided out there the same way you did."

"He doesn't _have_ anything!" Lacey ranted, "Danny was with me the entire night! He knows that already! This whole thing is a freaking joke!"

She was grateful, at least, that he hadn't been led away in handcuffs. Lacey was pretty sure she would have lost it had that been the case. But what actually did happen wasn't much better. It was still enough for Danny to be condemned in the eyes of the student body when he was taken into custody by the chief of police and two deputies. Archie had obnoxiously begun clapping as he was led away, which led to the entire assembly breaking out into applause. Disgusted with him and everyone else who had already determined Danny's guilt without evidence, she had quickly made a beeline for an equally infuriated Jo.

Presently, the two girls paced the floor of the bathroom in tandem, desperately wracking their brains for some reason, _any_ reason why Kyle Masterson might suspect Danny's involvement in Regina's murder. Lacey stopped short to regard Jo. "Did your dad say anything to you at all about why he's doing this?"

"Yeah, Lacey, of course he did! We sat down this morning over a bowl of Frosted Flakes and discussed his intention to arrest Danny for murder!"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I know you didn't see this coming either. I'm just upset."

"No, I'm sorry," Jo sighed, her anger and irritation spent as quickly as it blazed, "I shouldn't be taking out my frustration with my dad on you. He's been driving me crazy! Ever since Danny came back he's had this one track mind about him."

"Why does he have it out for him?" Lacey wondered, "I mean, I understand how he'd be a little uneasy given Danny's past but he's been a model citizen since he's been released. He gets good grades. He doesn't make waves here at school. I don't get it."

"He never thought Danny should have been released at all," Jo revealed quietly, "He always said that if Danny was allowed to come back to Green Grove, somebody else was going to end up dead."

Lacey went completely still, doubt and fear flittering across her pretty features. "Do you believe that?"

"That Danny killed Regina Crane?"

"No. That he could kill _someone_ period...again, I mean?"

It was a festering anxiety that lingered between them but had, heretofore, remained unspoken. There was no doubt that both Lacey and Jo wanted to believe in Danny again. They wanted to support him and help him succeed. He was determined to build a new life for himself and they were determined to help him do it. Still, the niggling doubts about him remained, especially when Danny refused to talk about the details of that day. They wanted to believe there was a plausible explanation for his actions but Danny made that difficult with his reticence.

"I don't know," Jo muttered after a tense beat of silence, "I don't like to think about it."

"Me either."

"My gut says 'no.' I can't imagine him killing anyone. I look at Danny now and I see the huge, ridiculous goofball he's always been," Jo said, "Yes, he's quieter and more secretive than he used to be but... He has a lot of demons. So do I and so do you. But the big stuff, the important stuff, the stuff that makes him Danny? That's still there, Lacey."

"I agree. I just wish he would talk about it. I need those answers."

"I know how you feel. I need them too," Jo replied, "I feel like he's holding a lot of bad stuff inside right now. It's probably not going to be good when it all comes spilling out." She surveyed Lacey with a meaningful look. "He's really going to need you to stand with him through the whole thing," she warned in a quiet tone, "And, if you can't do that, then you might as well bail now, Lacey."

"You think I'm going to abandon him like I abandoned you?" Lacey surmised grimly, "Is that what you're getting at, Jo?"

"I'm just saying that Danny is going to be a huge emotional investment for you. He doesn't trust _anyone_ , not even himself. I know how that feels. You want to let people in but you're so scared to do it. It feels like the hardest thing in the world. It's going to take him a while to open up to us completely and you're gonna have to be patient with him. You can't wash your hands because it gets too hard."

Lacey glared at her. "You mean like you did?" she spat, "You almost died, Jo! _You_ were the one who tried to leave _me_! Do you have any idea how much that screwed me up? I was a mess for years afterwards! Just because I never showed it, that didn't mean that day didn't affect me! So don't act like I just threw up my hands at you and said, 'Done!' That's not what happened!"

"That's how it felt, damn it!" As soon as her burst of anger was expended, Jo wilted forward with a defeated sigh. "I know all the reasons why you did what you did, Lacey, and they make sense to me. You weren't the only one who made mistakes. I made them too. Big ones. I get that. But what happened between us still hurts and I'm always afraid because... I still get really bad anxiety attacks and sometimes I go through periods of depression where everything sucks and I feel like I don't want to be here anymore.

"But I need to know that you're going to be there to talk me through those really dark times," she went on brokenly, "I have to be able to trust that and know that I can depend on you because...because I couldn't deal with it if you walked away again. I really couldn't."

Lacey didn't even think about it. She simply stepped forward and hugged Jo hard. There was only a split second of hesitancy on Jo's part before she lifted her arms to cling to Lacey just as tightly. "I'm not going to walk away. You _can_ depend on me," Lacey vowed fiercely, "I promise you, Jo. This time is going to be better. We're in this together."

"All three of us?" Jo mumbled with hoarse determination.

She felt Lacey grip her even tighter. "Yeah. All three of us."

When Lacey and Jo exited the bathroom five minutes later, they had a plan in place for heading straight to the Green Grove police department once Lacey had finished with her mandatory detention for the afternoon. After the girls parted ways, Lacey went to her locker to gather her books. She was mentally preparing the speech she would deliver to Chief Masterson later that afternoon when she spied Archie's approach in her peripheral vision. She couldn't believe his nerve. Lacey checked the impulse to slam her locker shut in pure fury.

"I know you're probably pissed off at me..." She didn't acknowledge him or his words beyond shooting him a contemptuous glare and then shouldering around him. Archie tipped back his head with an aggravated groan. "Can't you see that I was right about that guy?"

Lacey whirled to face him with a wrathful expression. "What the hell makes you think you were right?"

Archie glared at her incredulously, as if he believed the answer to that question should have been painfully obvious. "He just got arrested in front of the entire school, Lacey! He's clearly guilty."

"Or Chief Masterson is _clearly_ as small-minded and petty as the rest of the people in this school!" Lacey flung back, "Danny did not kill Regina. His past just makes him a convenient scapegoat. Meanwhile, Regina's _real_ killer gets away with murder!"

"Do you actually hear yourself talking right now?" Archie hissed, "Who are you? Where is my freaking girlfriend who used to have better judgment than this?"

Lacey swallowed thickly, recognizing right then how confusing everything must look to him from the outside. It was little wonder that her sudden closeness with Danny had set him on edge. From his viewpoint, their rekindled friendship had come out of nowhere. One day she had been declaring Danny Desai a psychopath and vowing to cut him from her life forever and then the next day she was his biggest champion. Archie had no way of knowing that Lacey had been struggling with the decision to let Danny back into her life from the moment she'd heard he was returning to Green Grove.

With all that in mind, Lacey felt much of her irritation with him dissipate. "Archie, Danny didn't do this," she said softly, "I absolutely know that."

"How are you so sure?"

"I...I can't tell you that," she stammered in rising guilt, "Please...you have to trust me on this. I would absolutely not support him if I thought for one second he was guilty of killing Regina."

"I _do_ trust you, Lacey or, at least, the you that you used to be before that freak came back here," he sighed, "What am I supposed to do with the fact that you're supporting him now and you absolutely _do_ know he has killed someone before?"

"It's complicated."

"Yeah, murder tends to be like that!" Lacey winced at the stinging vitriol saturating his retort. Archie dragged both hands down the length of his face in a bid for clarity. "I don't get you," he muttered thickly, "You've been different ever since he started going to school here. You said he didn't matter to you but, from where I'm standing, he seems to matter to you a whole hell of a lot!"

"What are you saying to me right now?"

"That you need to decide what you want and where you stand," Archie said, "You're going down this really dangerous path and I don't know if I can go with you."

Lacey blinked at him in stunned disbelief. "Are...are you breaking up with me?"

"I probably should," he answered, obviously torn by the prospect even as it was clear he remained frustrated by her choices, "but I don't want to do that. I don't like the choices you're making right now but I don't want us to be apart either. I don't want to break up. You mean everything to me. I love you, Lacey."

It was the first time he'd ever said the words to her. Quite honestly, she had never held any expectation that he would say them at all. They were still in high school, after all, with their attention divided between numerous extracurricular activities and future university pursuits. They were simply having fun and hanging out or so she thought. Lacey hadn't anticipated that what they had would become this deep, serious thing between them and yet it had...for Archie anyway. That wasn't to say that she didn't care about him, because she did, or that she didn't have genuine feelings for him, because she did but those feelings were _nowhere_ on the level of being in love with him. For Lacey, his quiet admission inspired crushing guilt rather than an elated need to reciprocate his avowal.

Her lack of response wasn't lost on Archie. "And obviously you don't feel the same way," he concluded gruffly, "Great. Now I feel like an idiot."

"Don't feel like an idiot," Lacey pleaded mournfully, "You caught me off guard, that's all. I'm processing a lot right now, Archie."

"So it's just bad timing, huh?" he said, clearly unconvinced, "Has nothing to do with the fact that you don't love me back? Or maybe you just want someone else."

By now she was recognizing how trite the explanation sounded, but she found herself saying it again anyway. "It's complicated, Archie." He scoffed and Lacey expelled a deep sigh. "Do you think we can talk about this later? I have detention and if I'm late Mrs. Kapalowski will make my life a living hell."

"What do you want to talk about, Lacey?"

"This! Us! What we want for our relationship!" she cried, "I'm not walking away right now. Is that what you want?"

He set his jaw tight, the muscle ticking ominously in his cheek. She thought when he spoke again he would refuse her request, but he surprised her when he said, "I can meet you after practice today."

"I can't this afternoon," Lacey hedged, "I'm hanging out with Jo later. We're doing something together."

He blinked at her, his forehead knit in a puzzled frown. "Jo? You mean that blonde chick that Desai hangs around with all of the time?"

"She's _my_ friend too," she bit out defensively.

"That's news to me!"

"Jo and I go way back. We have history together. We've recently started connecting again."

"Kinda like you and Desai, huh?" Archie considered in a tight voice.

Lacey deftly avoided getting sucked into that circular argument by saying, "Jo and I have a few things to get straight between us. We're just hanging out."

"Fine. Whatever. Do what you want, Lacey," Archie muttered in frustrated, "But when you decide you want to do something about _our_ relationship, you know where to find me."

An hour later, Jo slid into the passenger's side of Lacey's car and, almost the instant she glimpsed Lacey's dejected profile, she knew something was wrong. The brunette gripped the steering wheel in a taut knuckled grip, her bottom lip pulled firmly between her teeth. She looked as if she was going to burst into tears at any given moment.

"What happened?" Jo prompted warily, "Did you change your mind about going to the station today?"

"I have a great boyfriend!" Lacey announced without preamble.

Jo blinked at her in wordless consternation. "Okay. Thank you for sharing," she replied carefully.

"He's good and he's smart. He's athletic, funny, patient, good-looking and... He loves me." She turned to regard Jo with wild eyes. "He's everything I could possibly want in a guy! Right? _Right?_ "

"I guess..."

"So then why don't I want him?" Lacey wondered in a tearful mumble, "What's the matter with me? I have a good thing with him, a good, _stable_ thing and I'm throwing it away with both hands." Her features crumpled with the sob that bubbled forth from her lips. "I'm just like my mother."

"Oh god, Lacey..." Jo reached across the gearshift to place a reassuring hand on her forearm. "I wish I could give you some advice but...I got nothing. I've never had a boyfriend or even wanted one. It seems like too much work." Lacey responded to that with a noisy sob. "For what it's worth, I think what went down with your mom and dad was probably a lot more complicated than her throwing away a good thing with your dad."

"She never appreciated him," Lacey ranted tearfully, "She drove him away! That's why he left us!"

Jo shifted awkwardly, thinking about the furtive discussions she'd heard amongst her parents concerning Samuel and Judy Porter's dysfunctional marriage. There was definitely a reason why their relationship had fizzled but it had very little to do with Judy's inattentiveness. Jo briefly considered setting Lacey straight with the limited information she had on the subject but she also recognized that right then probably wasn't the time to drop life changing truths on Lacey. She was much too raw.

She gave Lacey's hand a reassuring squeeze. "All I know is that people are complicated," Jo whispered, "Nothing is ever black and white. Not with you and Archie and not with your parents either."

Lacey sniffled, blinking back the fresh tears that welled in her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm being a basket case right now. This is so stupid," she said, "I'm being stupid. We have more important things to worry about at the moment."

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" Jo pressed, "I'll listen if you want to vent."

"No," she said, already shutting down her emotions, "All I really want to do right now is help Danny."

When they arrived at the police station, Lacey and Jo were seated in a small cubicle and instructed by one of the deputies to wait for Chief Masterson's arrival. Apparently, while Danny was not under arrest, he was being held as a "person of interest" and Kyle Masterson was still in the middle of interviewing him. As they waited, the girls expended their nervous energy in different ways. Jo nibbled at the remnants of her shredded fingernails while Lacey jostled her knee. Both girls chided one another for their individual methods of coping.

"Stop doing that!" Jo hissed, "The knocking is driving me crazy! You're vibrating everything in a twenty foot radius!"

"That's better than you spitting your fingernails across the room! By the way, your hands look like crap, Jo," Lacey retorted, "They're crying out for a manicure."

They snarked back and forth at each other for the next several minutes. Lacey was, rather unsuccessfully, trying to convince Jo to have a makeover when Chief Masterson finally made his approach. Needless to say he didn't appear happy to see either one of them. Jo waged a valiant effort not to squirm under his narrowed glare.

"Both of you girls should be home right now!" he announced when he reached them. He leveled Jo with a sour look. "Especially _you_. Don't think I didn't see you sitting next to him today, young lady, and I'm not amused! How many times have I told you to keep your distance from Danny Desai?"

"Dad, we go to the same school," Jo volleyed back, "Avoiding him is kind of impossible."

"Why do I get the impression you don't even try?"

Before Jo could make a snappy comeback, Lacey quickly inserted, "Is Danny still here? You know he didn't have anything to do with Regina's death! He was with me the whole night."

Chief Masterson surveyed her with a probing stare. "Are you absolutely sure about that, Lacey?"

"I'm _positive_. We stayed up until the early morning just talking and then we watched a movie. I'm pretty sure I didn't fall asleep until sometime after 2 a.m."

"But you can't account for his whereabouts after that?"

"He was home!" Lacey exploded in frustration, "I woke up at five o'clock and he was asleep in his bed. Danny didn't do this!"

"According to the M.E.'s preliminary report, Regina Crane was killed between the hours of 2 and 4 a.m.," Kyle Masterson explained, "That still places him within the window of suspicion."

Jo emitted a dubious snort. "You've got to be kidding me! You dragged him down here on evidence as flimsy as _that_?"

"There are _other_ things as well," Chief Masterson replied cryptically.

With his response, both girls burst out simultaneously, "What other things?"

Masterson directed a pointed look at Lacey. "Maybe that's something you should ask Danny." But when he addressed his daughter, his sentiments were wholly different. "You, however, are to stay away from him. I won't talk to you about this again, Jo Marie."

"You just told us if we wanted to know what was going on that we'd have to ask Danny!" Jo huffed, "How am I supposed to do that if I can't be around him?"

"No. I told _Lacey_ that she should ask," Chief Masterson clarified, "She's not my child. It's up to her mother to deal with that headache. You, on the other hand, are _my_ responsibility and I don't want you near Danny Desai again. Is that clear?"

Frustrated on Jo's behalf after bearing witness to Kyle Masterson's obstinate blindness up close and personal, Lacey demanded somewhat impatiently, "Is Danny under arrest right now?"

"No. Not at this time."

"Then I'm taking him home."

A few minutes later Danny was escorted from the interrogation room. He appeared weary and defeated but otherwise no worse for wear. He stopped short upon finding Lacey and Jo waiting for him. When the officers holding him had explained to him that he was free to leave, he had been certain Karen was waiting to take him home. Seeing Lacey and Jo instead simultaneously filled him with relief and dread. By the grace of a higher power, he hadn't yet been connected forensically to the crime scene but, Danny wasn't sure how long his luck would hold in that regard. He didn't want Lacey and Jo to regret their decision to stand by him.

Lacey quickly explained that she was there to give him a ride home. Jo, of course, insisted on coming with them, despite her father's protests which, in turn, provoked a heated argument between father and daughter. Danny did what he could to diffuse the situation by urging Jo to listen to her dad, much to Kyle Masterson's irritation, and then promising her in a lower tone that they would talk at school the following day. With Jo somewhat mollified, Lacey and Danny headed out to her car. A brief period of silence ensued between them as Lacey put the car in drive and the adrenaline rush from the earlier moment in the station finally began to fade and settle.

Finally, Danny remarked softly, "I didn't expect you to show up today. Thank you. I figured you'd be a little wary after everything that happened at the assembly."

"I know you didn't do it, Danny. I had to make sure Chief Masterson understood that you had nothing to do with Regina's death," Lacey whispered, "I don't understand why he's pressing it."

For another countless time, Danny weighed the wisdom of telling Lacey the truth. He wasn't sure if he could reveal all of it to her...that he had, indeed, been present the night of Regina's murder and that, inexplicably, her stolen necklace, which looked eerily similar to his dead aunt's, had ended up in his locker and was now burning a hole in his pocket. When examined with a critical, unbiased eye, every piece of evidence fairly screamed his guilt. Suspension of belief could only go so far and Danny had little doubt that, after such a confession, Lacey's already shaky faith in him would be obliterated entirely. He would lose her and Jo both.

He didn't want that but he also knew he couldn't continue lying to them either, at least not completely. At the very least, he could reveal to Lacey why Chief Masterson was taking such a sustained interest in his possible connection to Regina's murder. Danny supposed that some part of the truth was better than none at all.

"The reason Chief Masterson is all over me right now is because...Regina texted me the night she was killed," he sighed, "In fact, according to their records, _I_ was the last person she had contact with that night. I mean, other than her killer."

Lacey digested that with a series of incredulous blinks. "Really? What did she want?"

Danny slid her an appraising, straight-faced glance. "What do you think?"

The response provoked a dubious snort from Lacey. "You're telling me that Chief Masterson took you in today because of a 'booty call' text? That's so stupid!"

"That's not completely the reason," he hedged. Danny waited until they reached a "STOP" sign before rooting around in his back pocket and tugging his cell phone free. He scrolled through his list of texts until he came to the last one Regina had sent him. Wordlessly, he passed the phone to Lacey.

He watched her face as she read, noting how her expression gradually changed from curiosity to confusion and finally to mounting concern. She swallowed several times before giving Danny back his phone. "I don't understand. What did she mean when she said she knew what really happened to your aunt? And also your father? Was she implying that your dad's death wasn't an accident? What could Regina possibly have known about either one of them? Why would she send you something like this?"

"I don't know. That's what I've been trying to figure out for two days."

"Why didn't you say anything to me? Or Jo?"

"I wasn't sure what to say. I had plenty of questions for myself. I definitely didn't know how I would answer yours. I also didn't want to open up that whole can of worms about Tara again. It seemed easier just to keep quiet."

The subtle thinning of Lacey's lips alerted him to the fact she was displeased by that decision but, thankfully, she didn't give him a hard time about it. "Okay, well...did you ever talk to Regina about your dad?"

"Are you kidding? Of course not," Danny balked, "Why would I?"

"I just figured with her mentioning her father's suicide to you that maybe you guys had a bonding moment over your dead fathers or something," Lacey posited lamely, "That maybe more happened between you two than you've let on."

"No. Not even close. Our only 'bond' was her trying to shove her hand down my pants and me pushing her away."

"Gee, thanks for that visual, Danny."

"I'm just saying there was nothing between us. _Less_ than nothing."

"Then it doesn't make sense," Lacey murmured, more to herself than to Danny, "Regina wasn't even around when Tara was killed. She and her family moved to Green Grove about a year after you were sent away."

"Like I said, I don't know what she was talking about. But Chief Masterson seems to believe this one, obscure text somehow gives me motive for murder. He won't let it go."

"You know...Regina actually sent me a weird text that night too."

Danny swiveled to face her with a speculative look. "Really? What did she say?"

"Something about how she couldn't expect me to tell her my secrets if she wasn't willing to tell me hers," Lacey recounted with a frown, "She wanted me to call her. I figured when I read the text that it was her way of goading me into talking to her. But now with her implying that she might have known something about your dad and aunt... I don't know anymore."

"Well, we need to figure it out," Danny sighed despondently, "and soon before Chief Masterson finds a way to send me back to jail for murder."


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

Danny sat on the edge of his bed and studied the necklace spilled across his slim fingers in stony silence. Three days had passed since he had discovered the heirloom in his locker and he was still no closer to figuring out who had put it there. He had several theories, however, the most chilling of which being that the killer himself had delivered it. It seemed farfetched and sketchy but it was, unfortunately, the thing that made the most sense to him. And, if that was the case, that meant that the killer not only knew who he was and where he lived but he was most likely watching Danny at that very moment as well.

He was genuinely scared. If he could have had even an ounce of faith in law enforcement, Danny wouldn't have hesitated to seek out Kyle Masterson's help. The idea that he was being framed for a murder he didn't commit was terrifying but there was no way Chief Masterson would ever entertain the notion that he was the victim in all of this. Therefore, he knew he was on his own. Danny placed the necklace on his nightstand with a despondent sigh as his thoughts inevitably began to circulate around Regina Crane's cryptic texts.

What secrets had she been keeping and had she truly known the truth about that day with Tara? More than that, did she know the truth about what had happened to his dad? The idea that his father had been killed in a boating accident had never resonated well with Danny. His father had been a capable seaman and had been quite skilled at navigating his way through stormy seas. Vikram Desai had also been a prudent man. He would have been cognizant of any impending storms and he definitely wouldn't have risked himself by going out into the middle of a monsoon.

Yet, those were the reports that Danny was expected to believe. His father had drowned at sea and his body had never been recovered. But had he really drowned...or had someone murdered him? Danny was beginning to wonder if Regina Crane's killer wasn't somehow connected to what happened to his father. Had there been a past connection between Vikram and Regina, a secret relationship perhaps? The thought was somewhat sickening to contemplate.

His father had been a grown man approaching forty when he died. Regina Crane had been a junior in high school. The idea that there had been some kind of liaison between them made Danny want to vomit. He certainly didn't want to know about it if that were true but he also needed answers. Not only for his peace of mind but also because he knew if he wanted to avoid being sent back to prison, possibly for a life without parole this time, he would have to find the truth.

Fortunately for him, his mother was a packrat and incapable of throwing anything away. By her own admission, Danny knew that Karen Desai had stored all of his father's old papers, files and personal effects in the attic following their separation. If there were any answers to be found about the double life Vikram Desai had been leading, it would likely be found there.

Resolved, Danny grabbed the necklace and dropped to his knees so that he could shove it deep between his mattress and box spring. He realized that he'd be unable to keep the jewelry piece hidden there indefinitely but, for now, it was the best option he had. After he was finished concealing it as best he could, Danny quietly tiptoed down across the hall into his mother's bedroom. Karen was currently downstairs in the kitchen making dinner and he didn't want to alert her to his intentions.

He crept into his mother's bedroom carefully so that his movements might not be detected by her downstairs. The entrance into the attic space was located in Karen Desai's enormous, bedroom closet, which was almost as large as a bedroom itself. The pristine white walls within were lined with rows and rows of designer shoes. A separate, special area was designated for her many, many outfits, which hung on an automated conveyor belt controlled by remote. Karen Desai had always prided herself on having the best. Danny's most distinct memories of her from his childhood usually involved her shopping or drinking or a combination of the two.

Shaking away those dismal thoughts, Danny navigated his way to the far end of the closet where the carpeted steps leading up to the basement were located. With a deep, resigned sigh, Danny clicked on the overhead light and made his way up the stairs. What greeted him there was a stark and strange contrast from the precise organization that was found below.

Towers and towers of boxes were stacked haphazardly throughout the interior of the attic. His father's prized designer suits had been thrown atop of them without care or any attempt to preserve their condition. The attic was fairly littered with things that had once belonged to him...his shoes, his golf clubs and tennis racket, his old soccer jersey from his college days. Danny stumbled forward and fingered the faded memorabilia, recalling with a bittersweet smile how his father would let him wear it during their informal soccer games together. But it was difficult to remember the good times without considering too how Vikram had later abandoned him.

Determined to shove the memories from his mind, Danny turned his attention to the box nearest to him and tore it open. It was filled with a hodgepodge of items, from watches and letter openers to letterhead and legal briefs, as if Karen Desai had merely tossed her estranged husband's belongings inside and taped it up to be forgotten. Danny suspected that wasn't too far from the truth.

He meticulously examined each item as he pulled it from the box, sometimes due to the memory associated with said item and sometimes due to his search for clues. But it was when he unexpectedly came across a weathered photograph he couldn't recall ever having seen before that Danny temporarily lost his focus. With a shuddering breath, he smoothed down the dog-eared edges and studied the picture with a strange combination of surprise, longing and loss.

The snapshot clearly had been taken some time ago, long before a time when photos were stored primarily on one's cell phone. The image was faded and discolored but that didn't at all detract from the story it told. He couldn't have been much older than three years old. His mother appeared to be in the middle of tickling him mercilessly and he was caught mid- hysterical giggle. His small face was scrunched in a cleansed expression that couldn't be described as anything other than pure delight. Likewise, his mother's countenance was equally bright and filled joy. She was barefaced and beautiful in her natural state, her unguarded smile directed at the photographer, her blue eyes sparkling with merriment and love. He knew instinctively that she was grinning at his father.

It was incontestable proof that his parents had once been deeply in love. They had been happy together and they had been happy with him. Once upon a time, they had been an actual family. Danny couldn't pinpoint the exact moment when it all started to fall apart but, once the decay began, it had been impossible to reverse.

Saddened by the realization but resigned as well, Danny folded the picture in half and placed it back inside the box. The past was the past. He had accepted long ago that he would never know that kind of happiness ever again and there was no use wishing for what had been lost forever. He could only go forward now, he told himself as he resumed his search. He _had_ to keep his focus on the things he could actually control.

After twenty minutes more of rummaging through his father's things, Danny finally came across a canceled check for 5,000 thousand dollars made out to a Robert C. Crane. Danny studied the check. It was dated approximately a month after he had been sent away to Huntington. That strange coincidence aside, Danny knew that the last name "Crane" could be rather common. What were the odds that Robert C. Crane and Regina Crane were any relation, he considered. Lacey would probably know the answer to that. Danny deposited the check in his back pocket, making a mental note to question her about it later.

His intention to explore further was thwarted, however, when he suddenly heard the unexpected chiming of the doorbell. Curious about who could be visiting them and suspecting that any impromptu visit was probably not a good thing, Danny quickly put everything back where he found it and made a hasty exit from the attic. When he tiptoed stealthily downstairs a few seconds later, he was surprised to find, not Chief Kyle Masterson as he had expected, but Rico Velazquez instead. He was also alone. Jo was nowhere to be found.

Danny rounded the corner to the living room with a puzzled frown as his mother swung around to regard him with a smile. "Look, sweetie, you have a visitor." The idea that he was making friends clearly thrilled her. He didn't know quite how to explain to her that he and Rico were a long way from being friends. In fact, the aforementioned was fidgeting rather awkwardly, the woeful expression on his face attesting to his reluctance to be there.

Suspecting that something might have happened to Jo, Danny darted a look over at his mother. "Can you give us a minute?" After she was gone, he wasted no time grilling Rico. "What happened? Is it Jo? She's not hurt, is she?"

"No! No! Jo's fine. She's good," Rico burst out in reassurance, "I'm not here for her. I'm here for you...or I mean for us. I mean, not us- _us_ because we don't have an us or a relationship or anything, not that there's anything wrong with two guys having a relationship because to each his own but, that's not what I...um...meant...yeah..." He expelled a frustrated grunt. "This isn't going quite how I imagined."

"Why don't you start from the beginning?" Danny invited patiently.

Rico nodded and, after sucking in a fortifying breath, he began anew. "Alright, so you're Jo's friend and I'm Jo's friend and we both care about her a lot."

"Agreed."

"But...but there is some tension between us and...and I think we should...you know...address that," he stammered.

Danny squinted at him thoughtfully. "You want to discuss the tension between us?"

"I don't trust you," Rico declared with uncharacteristic preamble, "You're secretive and shifty and I'm very uncomfortable with your past."

Because he couldn't really argue with those feelings, Danny merely nodded. "So noted."

"But Jo loves you," the other boy forged on, "Your friendship means the world to her and...well, _she_ means the world to me. She's been through so much in the last two years and overcome so much to get to where she's at and I don't want to see her hurt."

"I'm not going to do that," Danny vowed, "I'm not going to hurt her."

"Yeah. I believe you mean that," Rico mumbled, "I do but, I don't know you the way Jo knows you and, honestly? You really scare me, dude."

"That's not what I want. You don't have to be afraid that I'm going to attack you all the time. Contrary to what they say about me at school, I do not bathe in the blood of my victims under the light of a full moon. Actually, the only thing I'm trying to do is make it through high school as emotionally unscathed as I can."

"Yeah...I...I figured that," Rico stumbled, "And...And I _know_ I'm being ridiculous. Plus, it's important to Jo that I get over this. She said that she doesn't like feeling like she has to choose between us. I don't want to cause her any anxiety or...or make her worry, so...I'm gonna try it. I'm gonna try to get over it."

"And how are you going to do that?"

"I'm going to try to get to know you, Danny," Rico said with surprising steadiness and conviction, "I'm going to try to be your friend."

Danny didn't immediately know how to respond to the offer, not because he was offended by the offer but because Rico's generosity and obvious love for Jo resonated with him so deeply. He had to swallow several times before he had his emotions controlled enough to speak again. "I...uh...I really appreciate that, Rico," he said, "I don't have many friends here and I know that's with good reason. So, the fact that you're giving me a chance really means a lot."

Rico bit back a small smile. "It's kinda what I do. Jo likes to say I take up hopeless causes but I don't agree with her. Deciding to become her friend was actually one of the best decisions I've ever made." He regarded Danny with a cautiously optimistic look. "Who knows...maybe I'll end up feeling the same way about you."

Danny offered him a grateful smile. "I hope so too." He hitched his chin towards the television and the gaming system located just beneath it. "You wanna hang out here for a little bit? Play some games?" In the end, Rico wasn't really a big fan of traditional video games but, when he learned Danny had one that was specifically devoted to trivia, he was all in.

The awkwardness between them didn't dissipate instantly. Rico still had a tendency to blurt out whatever thought popped into his head and over-share his private foibles to an almost embarrassing degree but Danny was beginning to accustom himself to that. Beyond Rico's spastic nature, however, Danny came to appreciate just how brilliant and deeply insightful Rico could be. When the mystery aficionado stopped being so self-conscious and tongue-tied, he actually displayed an amazing wealth of wisdom and maturity. It was no wonder that Jo valued his friendship as much as she did. What began as two people trying to find common ground on behalf of someone they mutually cared for gradually became a relationship based on grudging respect.

Rico and Danny were in the middle of discussing the latest mystery novel that had captured Rico's attention when Karen Desai entered the living room with a platter of cookies and two tall glasses of milk. Rico smiled at her graciously while she set the items down before them while Danny stared at her as if she'd just sprouted a second head. "What are you doing?" he asked a little incredulously.

Karen shrugged. "I thought you boys might like a snack," she replied lightly.

"So you brought us _milk and cookies_?" Danny scoffed, "Really, Mother? Could you be _more_ of a walking cliché right now?'"

Refusing to be goaded, Karen ignored Danny's tart displeasure and bestowed Rico with a genial smile. "You're more than welcome to stay for dinner, young man."

"I appreciate that, Mrs. Desai, but it's spaghetti night at my house and I never miss spaghetti night." Rico watched her walk away afterwards, clearly besotted by her pretty blonde looks and soft spoken demeanor. Without thinking, he blurted out to Danny, "Your mom is beautiful." He belatedly became aware of his error only seconds before he noticed Danny's revolted grimace. "I...I mean for a mom, that is," he added meaningfully, " _My mom_ has a little bit of a chin beard but that's because she's going through the change of life."

"It's okay," Danny dismissed, relaxing in slow, measured increments despite his reassurance, "I just don't think of her that way."

"You mean as beautiful?" Rico questioned, not finding the admission all that surprising because who _did_ think of their mother that way.

"No," Danny countered somewhat grimly, "I don't think of her as my mother."

Realizing that he had inadvertently stepped on an emotional landmine, Rico frantically wracked his brain for the most delicate way to extricate himself from the situation. Regrettably, as it usually did, his mouth proved to work faster than his brain. "Well, I think you're being pretty ungrateful, if you ask me." He cringed with inward lamentations almost the instant he uttered the words aloud but it was too to call them back. He blinked at Danny in horror. "I...uh...don't know where that came from," he uttered softly.

"Obviously, you have some strong feelings on the matter."

"No!" Rico protested stridently, "No feelings! I have _zero_ feelings!"

"Go ahead," Danny invited in a soft tone, "Say what you really think."

Rico blinked at him rapidly. "Really? You're not going to...um...attempt to break something vital?"

"I asked you, didn't I?"

Satisfied that he wasn't going to be punched or otherwise harmed for stating his opinion, Rico began rather diplomatically, "Okay, granted I don't know all of the history between you and your mom. I know it's complicated but, I know what Jo has told me and what I've seen with my own eyes so far.

"She brings you cookies and milk," he recounted, ticking off the list on his fingers, "She's welcomes your friends into her home and is polite and cordial even if she's only just met them. She stands by you and supports you even with all the scrutiny she must get from being your mom. I haven't seen her look at you with anything besides complete love since I've been here. I get that you have a lot of abandonment and trust issues, Danny, but your mom? It seems to me that she's actually one of the people who _didn't_ turn her back on you. So...um...maybe you could give her a break."

His conscience was needled by Rico's astute observations but Danny masked his guilt behind a veneer of anger. "You're right, Rico," he uttered, his jaw tight, "You _don't_ know the history between us and it _is_ complicated."

Unnerved by his steely tone, Rico stuffed several cookies into his mouth. "Well, you asked," he reminded Danny around a mouthful.

It wasn't Rico's intention to reprimand him with the reply but Danny felt chastened nonetheless. He blew out a rueful sigh. "I'm sorry. That was obnoxious of me. My only excuse is that my mother is a sensitive topic."

Rico swallowed his mouthful, eyeing Danny warily. "You have a lot of those, don't you?"

"Well, I do have a dark and mysterious past," he joked.

"It doesn't have to be like that, you know," Rico told him in all seriousness, "You don't have to rely on yourself all the time, Danny. There are people who want to help you...you just need to let them."

After Rico was gone, Danny ate his dinner alone in the dining room while his mother remained in the kitchen. But, he felt strangely guilty for the decision. He couldn't help but dwell on the advice Rico had given him before departing for the night. For the first time he seriously contemplated whether he was being unfair to his mother. Danny thought about the picture he'd found earlier in the attic. Whatever faults Karen Desai possessed and mistakes she had made, Danny could not deny that his mother truly loved him. Maybe she didn't always express that love in the way that he thought she should or even the way he wanted but, she _was_ trying. He supposed the least he could do was meet her halfway.

Without really making a conscious decision about it, Danny rose from the dining room table and went to join his mother in the kitchen. Karen stood at the kitchen sink washing dishes. Danny went to stand beside her and wordlessly passed her his plate before sweeping up a clean dishtowel so that he could dry the dishes after she had finished washing and rinsing them. Karen cut him a surprised glance, obviously taken aback by his volunteer spirit, but otherwise she didn't make a comment about his actions. Neither did Danny. They washed and dried he dishes together in silence.

Finally, after an indeterminable amount of time, he asked her, "Wouldn't it be easier to use the dishwasher?"

"I think it's better to clean them by hand," she explained, "Less room for error."

"So you're saying you do a better job than a high powered machine that sprays jet streams of water at 170 degrees?"

"Absolutely."

The corner of Danny's mouth lifted in a crooked smile. "Are you a germaphobe, Mom, or more of a control freak instead?"

She didn't reply to his teasing but rather gasped sharply and swiftly pinned him with glistening blue eyes. "You never call me that."

"Call you what? A germaphobe or a control freak?"

"Mom," she clarified thickly, "You don't call me 'mom.' You're usually so formal with me. It's always 'mother' or 'Karen,' but never just 'Mom.' I like that. I like being called 'Mom.'"

Danny grunted, his own tears rising, hot and bittersweet, in the back of his throat. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to hurt you or...or punish you. I _do_ really love you, you know," he admitted gruffly, "I couldn't be nearly as angry with you if I didn't. But...it's so hard for me to trust you, to trust _anyone_ really and...and I'm scared to do it. I don't know really know _how_ to do it. So just...be patient with me for now. I'm trying to figure it all out but I need you to be patient with me."

"Okay...okay..." she uttered in a broken whisper, "I can do that. I can be patient."

He finished drying the remaining dishes in the sink and proceeded to put the away in the cupboard. "Thanks... _Mom_."

That night when Danny went to bed he was in relatively good spirits in spite of the dismal circumstances that continued to loom over him. He didn't even have any nightmares. For the first time since returning to Green Grove, Danny Desai enjoyed a restful, dreamless sleep. He might have slept on well into the morning had his cell phone not buzzed to life somewhere around one o'clock in the morning. Danny peered at the number illuminated on his caller i.d. screen and immediately recognized it as Lacey's home phone number. Instantly alarmed, he answered the call.

"Lacey?" he croaked groggily, rolling upright to scrub the sleep from his eyes, "What's wrong?"

"Hey," she whispered as if her call were completely an ordinary and expected thing.

"Hey," Danny returned with some degree of worry, "What's going on? It's 1:15 in the morning."

"I know." Her tone was ridiculously chipper for such a late hour. "Were you asleep?"

"Uh...yeah...kinda. How are you calling me right now?"

"On the telephone. Duh."

"I know that, smart ass. I thought your mother had you on lockdown."

"She does. I waited until she fell asleep and then I snuck downstairs to use the land line. I couldn't risk using my cell since she monitors all my outgoing calls."

"So, what's up? What's so important that you had to risk your mother's wrath to talk to me?"

"It wasn't anything dire. Maybe I just wanted to talk to you," she replied airily. While Danny was still reeling over that sincere response, Lacey asked, "Do you remember when we used to call each other late at night and talk about all kinds of silly stuff?"

He smiled fondly at the recollection and settled back against his pillow. Now that he was satisfied that Lacey wasn't calling for any emergent purpose he could relax again. "Yeah, I remember," he laughed, "You wanna call Jo then? It's not completely right if we don't do this three-way."

"I already tried that," Lacey sighed, "Sadly, her cell phone, much like mine, has been confiscated by the parental units. When I called, Chief Masterson answered and told me to go to bed."

"Oh, so I'm your second choice, huh?" Danny chuckled, "I'm a little hurt."

"A close second though," she reassured him sweetly, "I was just kinda in the mood for girl power."

"Does that mean that things are getting better between you and her?"

"Yeah. It feels like we're finally starting to turn a corner. We're sorting through all of that stuff that happened between us after you went away."

"That's really good. I'm glad for you, Lace."

"It's because of you, Danny," she told him, "I think forgiving you helped Jo and I forgive each other."

He sucked in a sharp breath at the disclosure. "So, you've done that, huh?"

"Done what?"

"Forgiven me," he clarified quietly.

"Oh, like you didn't see that coming, Desai," she snorted lightly.

His reply was fervent and resonant with emotion. "I _didn't_ see it coming. I mean, I knew you both were willing to give me another shot at being your friend but... I never let myself hope that it could ever be the way it was before. I thought that would be expecting too much."

"Well, if I'm honest, I thought the same thing," Lacey confessed, "But there is something about you, Danny Desai. Even when I try and try to turn my back on you, I just can't do it."

They purposely avoided discussing the possible reasons that was true and, instead, Danny informed her rather happily, "You're not the only one making emotional breakthroughs lately. I think my mother and I came to an actual truce today."

"Seriously? It's about time you put aside some of that anger. Danny, I'm so proud of you!"

"You shouldn't be," he replied modestly, "I didn't come up with it on my own. Rico stopped by and provided me with a little unbiased prospective on things."

"Rico? You're talking about Jo's friend, right?"

"Yeah. He thought that maybe he and I should come to terms with each other for Jo's sake," Danny said, "He say he wants us to be friends."

"Doesn't seem like you two would have much in common."

"No, it doesn't," Danny agreed, "But, as weird as he is, I kind of like him."

"That's cool. He seems decent enough. Definitely cares a lot about our Jo."

"About as much as I care about you." Another strained silence stretched between them following that admission. Recognizing that Lacey lacked the temerity to address his words at all and fearing she might prematurely end the conversation due to discomfort with the subject, Danny sighed and gamely changed the topic altogether. "The point is, I owe him a huge 'thank you.' He told me what I needed to hear, no sugar coating it. I feel like my mom and I made some real progress tonight and it actually felt good to let go of some of the anger and resentment I felt for her."

"That's really great, Danny."

"Maybe you could think about doing the same thing with _your_ mom," he suggested pointedly.

Lacey denied that possibility with alacrity. "Um...no way. The key difference between our mothers is that yours actually _wants_ to be a parent. Mine is a complete phony. She's all about putting on a good show and that's it. She always has been."

"I think you're way too hard on her, Lace. I know your mom loves you. You should try giving her the benefit of the doubt."

"You don't know how bad it got with her after you were sent away!" Lacey retorted sharply, "Even if I had _wanted_ to talk about everything that happened with you, she wouldn't have been any kind of support to me. She was too wrapped up in her own problems to give a damn about what was happening to me and Clara! I practically raised myself and _my sister_ on my own! It's a little late for her to be trying to play 'Mommy' now."

"O...kay. I can see this discussion is pissing you off a little."

"Try _a lot_ ," she bit out, "You can't compare our situations, Danny! Your mom has an illness. My mom is just a selfish bitch. So I'd like to drop this subject if it's all the same to you."

"Alright. Consider it dropped."

His easy acquiesce had Lacey modifying her implacable tone with him, partly due to gratitude and partly due to her fear she was being overly sensitive. Hoping to restore the relaxed atmosphere between then, she teased brightly, "Besides, I'd rather hear about this newfound friendship you've struck up with the captain of the Mathletes. I still can't get over it. You and Rico Velazquez are like night and day."

"He's something of an acquired taste," Danny admitted with a laugh, "But, then again, so am I."

"No arguments there, Desai."

"Bite me, Porter. Anyway, I wouldn't call it a friendship so much as I would say we've come to an understanding and we are getting to know one another better," Danny said, "Though he _did_ offer to teach me how to drive."

"What? Seriously?"

"Okay, technically he didn't make the offer so much as I _asked_ him to teach me but, he didn't say no. I mentioned to him how I was wanting to learn and then he said that his older brother had been teaching him and that he was going for his license at the end of the month. So, of course, I made the brilliant suggestion that he should pass those lessons onto me."

"Of course," Lacey deadpanned, "The infamous Desai 'charm' strikes again."

"Are you implying that I manipulate people into giving me what I want, Lacey Porter?"

"If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck..."

"I'm hurt. I'm genuinely wounded here."

"So why rope an unsuspecting Rico into whatever it is you're scheming?" Lacey wondered, "You could have asked your mom or even me, for that matter. I'd be glad to teach you. What are you up to, Danny?"

"First of all, I said I was making progress with my mom. I didn't say we were ready to start wearing matching t-shirts," he replied, "I can't see her giving me driving lessons at this point. Second of all, you're currently under house arrest so unless you can provide lessons via teleprompter, you're out too. Third of all, it's not a scheme to seek out a little independence and I'm a little offended that you assume I'm up to no good. I asked Rico for a favor because I thought I could kill two birds with one stone. I get to know him better _and_ I learn how to drive at the same time. Win/win."

"Ugh," Lacey groused, "You and the win/win again. You were obsessed with that when we were kids."

"It's brilliant and you know it, you just don't want to show it," he mocked in a sing-song tone.

"You are so very lame," she laughed, "But I'm happy for you, Danny. It's good that you're making friends finally and starting to fit in. Maybe you've turned a corner now and some good things to will start happening for you. It's about time."

Danny's smile faltered and then collapsed entirely at the optimism in her tone. While it was true that things seemed to be finally going his way, he knew better than to put too much hope in those good things lasting too long. Experience had been a harsh and exacting teacher. The other shoe still hovered in mid-air, waiting to drop.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Am I suddenly invisible to you or what?"

Lacey calmly shut her locker and pivoted to face an irritated Sarita. She couldn't really deny the salty charge. She had been fairly distracted lately. Danny had recently revealed to her that, after nosing around in his father's stuff, he had come across several canceled checks made out to a Robert C. Crane. He had wanted to know if it was possible the mysterious Robert Crane and Regina had any particular connection. Somewhat chilled by the implication, Lacey had confirmed his suspicions. Robert C. Crane was Regina's late father.

For some yet undiscovered reason, Vikram Desai had been paying large sums of money to Robert Crane over a period of several years. Several questions arose based on that discovery, the most pertinent being how had Vikram managed to have such access to that kind of abundant cash. The second question was, why was he giving so much of it to Robert Crane? Unless Vikram Desai had harbored some secret need to gift his friends and acquaintances with huge quantities of money, only one explanation seemed to make sense. Robert Crane had most likely been extorting money from Vikram Desai and that had, apparently, started a full year before he'd even moved to Green Grove with his family. But for what reason?

For the past few days, Lacey, Danny and Jo had been deeply embroiled in that mystery, devoting every bit of free time they had during school to unraveling the complete connection between Vikram and Robert. When she wasn't holed away with them in Danny's attic, pawing through boxes and boxes of junk, she was doing her best to play the part of a dutiful girlfriend. After Archie's confession and her less than enthusiastic response to it, Lacey had been bound and determined to make up for the hurt she had caused him. He had been leery of her efforts in the beginning but had, eventually, warmed to her attempts to woo him. Lacey made a point of attending all of his practices, studying with him after school and even inviting him to her house regularly for dinner.

The fact that she was in Archie's company so frequently had the unexpected result of her mother relaxing her punishment in gradual increments. It seemed to Lacey that the more convinced Judy was of her affection for Archie, the less she viewed Danny as a threat. Of course, Judy was still very adamant about Lacey keeping her distance and, consequently, Lacey had to be creative about spending time with Danny if she didn't want her mother to make good on the threat of a restraining order. But, Lacey acknowledged to herself, as time went on it became more and more evident that Judy's fears about her developing feelings for Danny were indeed valid ones.

It was Lacey's hope that if she tried hard enough and she devoted herself long enough, she could stop obsessing over Danny and eventually become the type of girlfriend Archie deserved. She fully believed that if she could purge the queer desire she had for her secretive, mysterious and frustratingly reserved childhood friend from her heart and head she could actually reciprocate Archie's feelings. Her blind determination to prove herself the polar opposite of her mother was driving Lacey to irrational lengths but, in her mind, her actions made complete sense. She wouldn't pull a Judy Porter and drive away the man who loved her. Not if she could help it.

Thus, in her preoccupation with school, various extracurricular activities and the respective Danny/Archie situations, Lacey had been left with very little time for any meaningful interaction with Sarita. She felt especially guilty about that because Regina's death was still very fresh and it was likely that Sarita was struggling with it just as Lacey was. And, with her phone still being closely monitored by her mother, she didn't have the convenience of dropping Sarita a quick text to let her know what was going on. If she in Sarita's place right then, she might feel abandoned and angry as well. In recognition of that, Lacey faced her now with a chagrined expression.

"No, you're not invisible to me," she sighed, "I'm sorry. I know I've been distracted lately."

"I get it, okay. Regina died and it's been hard for everyone. I know you're probably having a rough time with what happened because you guys were in a fight but... I feel like I'm being cut off here, Lacey."

"That's not true. I'm not cutting you off, Sarita. I'm swamped. That's all."

"Right. You've been too busy for me but not too busy for the DePsycho kid and Camo girl," Sarita pointed out tartly, "Suddenly, every time I see you these days, you're in the hallway whispering with them. What's up with that, huh?

"Oh my god, Sarita," Lacey groaned in consternation, "They have names! Use them. It's not that hard."

"Okay, fine," Sarita snapped, "Why is it that you have all the time in the world for your little childhood buddies _Danny and Jo_ but you and I have barely spoken since Regina died?"

"You know that Chief Masterson is trying to pin Regina's murder on Danny. Jo and I are working together to clear his name, Sarita."

"How can you be so sure that it _should_ be cleared, Lacey? Isn't murdering helpless women kind of his m.o.?"

Lacey briefly closed her eyes and took several, cleansing breaths. "Okay. I know you're irritated with me so I'm going to let that comment slide."

"What? It's not like I'm saying anything that isn't true," Sarita argued stubbornly, "Danny Desai could very well be Regina's killer and the fact that you're hanging around him again is a little disturbing. You would think you would have learned something from Regina."

"Danny did not kill her."

"And yet, that's what everyone around here believes. Obviously so does the Green Grove _Chief of Police_ , otherwise he wouldn't have taken him out of here the other day like he did."

"That was for questioning," Lacey emphasized, "Chief Masterson has been interviewing everyone who attended the party that night, Sarita, including you, me and four dozen other kids."

"The only difference is that none of _us_ had to go down to the police station escorted by armed deputies."

"Okay," Lacey interrupted before the argument could escalate further, "I don't want to talk about Danny anymore. You and I aren't going to agree about it. Instead, let's focus on us. Why don't you come hang out at my place tonight. We could have a sleepover and binge on junk food until 2 a.m."

Sarita appeared skeptical but interested. "Is that going to be okay with your mom?"

"Yeah, she'll be cool with it," Lacey replied, "She was just asking me this morning why you haven't been over in so long. Come on," she coaxed further, "It will be great."

A small smile tugged at the corner of Sarita's lips. "Well, if you insist..."

"I'll even invite Jo and we can make it a real girls night," Lacey added excitedly.

Sarita's burgeoning smile collapsed immediately. "You're going to invite _her_?" she balked, "Really?"

"Don't take that attitude," Lacey rallied, firmly ignoring Sarita's strident protests, "Besides, this will be good for you. It will give you both an opportunity to get to know one another. I would like it if my friends could get along."

"This is going to be a disaster," Sarita muttered.

Lacey grinned with unrestrained enthusiasm. "I'm going to take that as a 'yes.'"

Not surprisingly when Lacey extended the same invitation to Jo later that day, Jo had a reaction similar to Sarita's. She blinked at Lacey with a deadpan expression and said, "You want to do what?"

"I'm not taking 'no' for an answer," Lacey told her in a tone that tolerated no argument, "You and I have done nothing except obsess over Danny for the last few days. We need a breather. So you're coming to my house tonight whether you like it or not!"

As anticipated, Lacey didn't have much resistance from her mother on the slumber party. In fact, she had been thrilled that Lacey was focused on what she termed "normal teenage girl pursuits." She had even volunteered to go out and purchase snacks and refreshments for the night. While their mother was out shopping, Lacey carefully laid down the ground rules with her younger sister.

"This is night is for me, Sarita and Jo only," she stressed to Clara sternly, "Don't be a pest tonight or I'll lock you in the coat closet downstairs."

"No, you won't," Clara flipped back with airy bravado, "Or I'll tell Mom you've been sneaking on the phone to call Danny every night."

Lacey gasped and hurled a sofa pillow at her. "You little eavesdropper! You've been spying on me?"

"Not on purpose," Clara cried as she staved off Lacey's stalking advance, "I came downstairs one night to get a snack and I heard you laughing." Lacey lunged and yanked hold of a shrieking Clara. She placed her in a headlock, making a threatening gesture as if she meant to lick her squirming sister's face. "No! Don't do it! I won't say anything to Mom!" Clara wailed, "I swear it!" Satisfied that she'd made her point, Lacey shoved her away. Clara glared at her. "God! You are so gross!"

"You really can't tell Mom," Lacey advised her in all seriousness, "If you do, you could get Danny in big trouble, Clare."

"Okay. I wouldn't do that," Clara conceded, "It's just..."

"Just what?"

Clara squinted at her sister thoughtfully. "Are you cheating on Archie with Danny?"

"What?" Lacey balked, "No! Of course not! Why would you ask me something like that?"

"I dunno," Clara replied with a shrug, "It's just the look on your face when you talk to him, how your voice sounds sometimes...like maybe you like him."

"I do like him."

"No. I mean _like_ him," Clara emphasized, bobbing her eyebrows, "Like you want to _kiss_ him, like him."

"You're being ridiculous."

Clara sniffed. "Well, if you don't want to kiss him then I will." Her expression became positively dreamy as she added, "He's beautiful."

For the next two hours while she awaited Jo and Sarita's arrivals, Lacey obsessed over her sister's innocent observation. She felt self-conscious and a tiny bit paranoid. Granted, Clara was an incredibly perceptive and sometimes obnoxiously precocious child but, Lacey worried if she had been able to pick up on Lacey's feelings for Danny so easily, was it as painfully obvious to others? She'd like to think she was rather cool about it.

After all, when she and Danny were at school together, they were always discreet about their meetings. When they passed one another in the hallways, they usually only met each other's eyes briefly and nodded in acknowledgment before continuing on in their opposite directions. She didn't sit with him and Jo during lunch period or even join the group study sessions they had with Rico at Johhnycakes. To the outside world, she and Danny Desai were merely cordial acquaintances who shared mutual friends. And yet, in spite of Lacey's careful efforts to maintain that facade, her twelve year old sister had picked up on the truth seemingly without any difficulty.

Lacey couldn't deny that she had come to look forward to her late night, clandestine phone calls to Danny. He never seemed irritated by the fact she was disturbing his sleep and, in fact, the last few times she had spoken to him he had been already awake and anticipating her call. Sometimes they reminisced on the past. Other times they discussed his father's connection to the Crane family. Most of the time, however, they simply talked.

In small bits, Danny had begun to reveal to her what his life had been like while he'd been in juvie. The first few months had been tough for him. He had gotten into a lot of fights and spent quite a few weeks in solitary confinement due to acting out and being resistant. He hadn't liked being caged and his resentment over that fact kept him from accepting his situation. It had taken Danny almost a year to understand that losing his physical freedom didn't have to equate with losing his mental and emotional freedom too. Eventually, he acclimated to "life on the inside" as he called it and more amazingly, he made friends, even with the boys who had initially been his persecutors. By the time Danny left Huntington, those same young men had become his protectors.

"Do you still keep in contact with them?" Lacey had asked him one night, feeling uneasy in anticipation of his answer. But he had surprised her by saying "no."

"It's an unspoken rule," Danny told her, "Once you're out, that life is over. You don't look back. If I ever need one of them though, I know where to find them and vice versa."

His vague response on the subject both chilled her and peaked her curiosity further. Lacey could admit that she was intrigued as intrigued by the more dangerous aspects of Danny's personality as she was repelled by them. She was drawn to him in a way that went far beyond the crush she'd had on him as an eleven year old girl. She admired the strength and determination in him now. She appreciated his irreverent sense of humor. She was attracted to his dark, good looks. She adored his goofy, lopsided smile. But what Lacey truly enjoyed was the easy communication between them. Once she decided to stop being so stubborn and get out of her own way, Lacey discovered that she _liked_ talking to Danny...a lot. She could talk to him about anything.

But they could only be friends, Lacey reminded herself, and nothing more. There were still too many unknown variables with him, still too many ways her heart could get hurt. Giving into her growing romantic feelings for him was not a gamble Lacey was ready to make. Broken heart aside, she couldn't risk losing Danny's friendship again, not when they had only just started rebuilding it. _Nothing_ was worth that and nothing ever would be.

Once Jo and Sarita arrived, Lacey deliberately put aside her disquieting thoughts about Danny altogether. Both girls made keeping herself distracted easy because they were almost immediately snapping at each other within moments of being confined to the same room. While her mother ordered their dinner and arranged snacks, Lacey did her utmost to keep things relaxed and festive. To lighten the mood, she suggested the girls go ahead and change into their pajamas and then they could all convene in the living room for scary movies and pizza. At every opportunity she would praise Jo's greatest attributes to Sarita and then also sing Sarita's praises to Jo.

It was her devout hope that the two of them could get along and then she wouldn't have to keep those parts of her life so separate. Lacey knew that Sarita would likely never accept Danny and, given the circumstances she supposed that was understandable. But there was absolutely no reason why Sarita and Jo couldn't become friends. It took several hours but, after an entire pizza and one scary movie, the atmosphere between them did seem to thaw a little.

As the mood grew less tense, Lacey and Jo found themselves reminiscing on the sleepovers they used to have in the past and laughing over the memory of how Danny had pouted over not being included and how they had sometimes prank called him late at night. Jo sprawled out across the living room floor and contemplated the ceiling with a happy smile. "It's a shame we can't prank call him now," she giggled, "Do you remember how annoyed he would get with us?"

Lacey drew herself up to do her best Danny Desai impression. "Um...hello? Hello? Come on, guys this isn't funny! Jo, I know this is you breathing all heavy! Lacey? Lacey, is this you? Cut it out!" She and Jo dissolved into a fresh fit of laughter at that point, unaware that their hilarity and mutual connection was causing Sarita to feel envious, irritated and left out.

"Are you two seriously considering prank calling a killer right now?" she snapped tersely.

Jo rolled upright and regarded her with a sour look. "Well, he wasn't a killer then, so there's that..."

"I still don't get how either of you can bother associating with him at all," Sarita sniffed. She raked Jo with a scornful once-over. "Well, maybe I can imagine _you_ since you strike me as being limited on common sense but, I expected way more smarts from Lacey."

The look Jo threw back at her was equally contemptuous. "Maybe you don't get it because you have a chunk of ice where your beating heart should be, Sarita. From what I understand, cyborgs can't know compassion because they're incapable of the emotion."

Lacey quickly scooted in between them before their bantering insults could escalate further. "Okay, come on you guys. I thought we were making progress."

Sarita pursed her lips. "If by 'progress' you mean me sitting here while you and G.I. Jane cackle about your boring past together then, yeah, Lacey...we're making _tons_ of progress."

"Then what do you want to do?" Lacey sighed diplomatically, "What do you want to talk about, Sarita?"

"Um...this is _your_ party," Sarita retorted, "You're the one who's supposed to be coming up with ideas to entertain me!"

That bitchy comment then set the precedence for the remainder of the night. Sarita wouldn't show an ounce of eagerness for anything Lacey suggested to do for fun but whenever she had even an inkling that Jo and Lacey were enjoying themselves, she made a point of saying something nasty. It was as if she was determined to be miserable and make them miserable in the process. That continued on well into the early morning hours until Lacey and Jo were finally left with no choice but to actively ignore Sarita and her bad temper. In turn, being ignored only made Sarita _more_ bad tempered. From her point of view, she was slowly losing her best friend right before her eyes and there wasn't a thing she could do to stop it.

The escalating tension of the night finally reached a climax when all three girls retired upstairs. With much arm twisting, Lacey managed to convince Jo into allowing her to flat iron her unruly blonde curls. With Jo seated at her vanity and Lacey focused on the daunting task of taming Jo's wild locks, the moment inevitably triggered a memory from their childhood of the first time Lacey had ever attempted to straighten Jo's hair.

"I was surprised by how long it actually was," Lacey remarked, "I really had fun that day."

"Oh yeah, it was fun for you but torture for me," Jo recalled with a wry laugh, "Not only did you burn me like half a gazillion times..."

"It was not a gazillion," Lacey laughed.

"...But then it was completely ruined in like five minutes. We went outside to play and it was like my hair sucked up every bit of moisture in the atmosphere."

"I always thought your curls were pretty."

From her perch on Lacey's bed, Sarita snorted. Both Jo and Lacey turned to regard her with matching expressions of annoyance. "Really? Because I remember you saying her hair looked like a lion's mane."

Lacey glared at her. "I did _not_ say that. _Regina_ said that."

"Oh yeah, that's right. Regina used to call her Simba. She would hum the theme to _The Lion King_ whenever she would walk past in the hallway and we would all just laugh and laugh. Didn't we laugh so hard, Lacey?"

The color drained from Jo's features as Sarita's words triggered some of her more awful memories from middle school. She didn't say a word but Lacey could tell from the reflexive way she bunched her fists against her thighs that she was getting upset. In silent apology, she placed her hand against Jo's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze before shooting Sarita a disgusted look. "That was a long time ago, Sarita," she said, "And that's not the person I am anymore. What's wrong with you? I don't understand why you're being so awful tonight."

Sarita blinked at her with a wide stare full of artificial sincerity and budding malice. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I do something wrong? I thought we were playing the 'remember when' game. Like, for instance, remember when Jo Masterson went crazy and had to be committed to the psych ward for 'exhaustion?'" she finished with air quotes, "But everyone knew it was because she had a breakdown. Those were good times, weren't they?"

That comment proved to be the tipping point. The reminder of one of the darkest days she'd had in her recovery towards mental health destroyed what was left of Jo's poise. With an anguished whimper, she took off from the bedroom, her footfalls beating across the hallway as she ran to lock herself in the bathroom. Lacey rounded on Sarita with a wrathful snarl. "I think that must be the bitchiest thing you've ever done, Sarita! Get the hell out of my house!"

For the first time, Sarita's superior expression faltered. She rolled from the bed with a dazed expression. "What?"

"You heard me! Get out!" Lacey grated, "I've done nothing tonight except try and include you and make you feel welcome and you've had an awful attitude the whole time! Fine! You don't want to be here then you don't have to be! Go home!"

"You're seriously going to choose _that_ girl over me? After everything we've been through together? We've been best friends since eighth grade, Lacey!"

" _I_ didn't want it this way! But what you just said to Jo was beyond cruel. That's nothing to tease someone about! Are you completely heartless?"

"If she can't handle the truth about herself that's on her, not me."

"You need to apologize to her," Lacey declared flatly, "Are you going to do that? Because that's the only way to make this right."

Sarita fell into a defensive stance, arms crossed in challenge. "Hell no!"

"Then I don't think we have anything else to say to each other."

"So you're just going to stop being my friend over it? That's it? It's not like what I said was a lie!" Sarita flung back angrily, "The whole school knows she's loony tunes! Isn't that the reason why you dumped her ass in the first place?"

Lacey opened her mouth to school Sarita on knowing absolutely nothing about why she and Jo had stopped being friends when her mother suddenly came running into the bedroom with a harried expression. "What on earth is going on in here?" Judy demanded, "It's almost two o'clock in the morning! Why are you girls screaming at each other?"

Both Lacey and Sarita responded to that with stony silence. Judy glanced about the room, noting Jo's conspicuous absence. "Where's Jo?" More stony silence. "Will someone please tell me what's going on?" Judy cried in exasperation.

"Sarita needs to go home, Mom," Lacey said at last, "Right now. I want her out of this house!"

"Gladly!" Sarita spat, "And you don't ever have to worry about me coming back here! We're done." She whirled around to begin haphazardly stuffing her belongings back into her overnight bag. "Enjoy your little freak show entourage! Your social life at school is over!"

Helpless in the wake of the escalating tension and still a little confused after being so abruptly aroused from sleep, Judy tried to propose a diplomatic approach. "Okay, I realize you girls have had a fight," she said, "I'm not going to ask you what it was about _but_...it is very late. There's no reason to wake Sarita's parents to drop her off in the middle of the night. She can stay in the guest room and then, if you two haven't worked it out by the morning, I will take her home first thing."

Lacey folded her arms, her features set with angry, stubborn resolve. "Fine by me."

After her mother left to show Sarita to her room for the night, Lacey curled up in the center of her bed and waited for Jo to finally emerge from the bathroom. She wanted to go to her but fear of rejection kept her rooted in place. She was terrified that Sarita had managed to destroy all the progress they had made. She feared the possibility that Jo might not want to be her friend anymore.

By the time Jo crept from the bathroom ten minutes later, it was evident she had been crying. Her blue eyes were puffy and rimmed with angry red. Her face appeared splotchy with color. Her nose was also bright red. Lacey took one look at her and felt like crying herself. She hadn't imagined that she could possibly feel more awful than she had been feeling moments earlier until she was brought face to face with Jo's desolated expression.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly as Jo stumbled inside.

"I'm okay," Jo replied in a gruff tone, "I guess all that stuff Sarita was saying, it just...it brought back a lot of painful stuff for me and I needed a minute."

When she sat down on the bed across from Lacey, Lacey blurted, "I'm sorry, Jo."

Jo peered at her with a small frown. "For what? You weren't the one hammering at me."

"Because of how I acted back in middle school," she mumbled, "I should have done something to stop them. Not just Regina but everyone who bullied you back then. I shouldn't have stood by and watched them torment you like I did, Jo."

"Probably not," Jo agreed, "But you're doing something about it _now_ and that's what counts. We agreed we were going to leave the past in the past, Lacey, and I'm sticking by that." Lacey lurched forward and threw her arms around Jo's neck, her entire body shuddering with the heaving sobs she kept at bay. She was eternally grateful for Jo's forgiveness even while she felt she didn't deserve it at all. Jo, on the other hand, couldn't imagine _not_ forgiving Lacey, not when her regret over the past was so very evident.

Jo hugged her back, her mouth twisting in a wry smile. "Hey, I'm the one who was triggered tonight. Why am _I_ comforting _you_?" Lacey drew back with a teary sniffle and dried her watering eyes with the edge of her t-shirt. It was then that Jo became aware that Sarita was nowhere to be found.

"What happened to her majesty?" she wondered dryly.

"She's in the guest room. My mom is taking her home first thing in the morning. Safe to say, our friendship is pretty much over."

"I'm sorry, Lacey," Jo said with genuine remorse, "I wasn't trying to come between you two. Are _you_ okay right now?"

Lacey shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sad about it but I don't really feel regret. It's not like how it felt when you and I stopped being friends. Back then, it felt like there was this giant hole inside of me and I was trying to do everything I could to fill it up. This thing with Sarita really _does_ feel like it was inevitable. She was never going to be okay with me having you and Danny back in my life anyway. Eventually, she would have tried to make me choose. She pretty much implied that tonight."

"You think so?"

"I feel like if she was really my friend, she'd try to find a way to accept where I am in my life right now."

"And where are you right now?"

"It feels like I'm finding _Lacey_ again. The real her. I lost her for a while there."

"I can relate. I lost the _real_ Jo Marie for a little bit myself," Jo confessed, "It's funny how Danny coming back home again has put everything into perspective."

Lacey laughed to herself. "I can't believe I ever thought that his coming back to Green Grove was the worst thing that could ever happen to me. It turned out to be one of the best things. Go figure."

Jo regarded her with a speculative look. "What's going on between you and Danny, Lace?"

"Nothing," she said. But the nervous darting of her eyes told another story.

"Come on," Jo urged softly, "This is me you're talking to here. I just don't get why you guys aren't together already. I know he wants that and I'm pretty sure you want that too."

"I have a boyfriend, Jo."

"Speaking of the boyfriend...that relationship definitely isn't doing you any favors, by the way," Jo replied frankly, "You shouldn't stay with the guy out of obligation, Lacey, or because you think dumping him will make you a bad person."

"I don't want to be that person who walks away from people who need me," Lacey mumbled, "I've done that before and I hated myself for it."

She didn't elaborate further but Jo easily discerned that Lacey was talking about her. "Stop doing that," she said, "Stop blaming yourself for what happened in the past! I was an absolute mess back then. I was wild and irrational and I pushed you away every chance I got. I was so busy drowning in my own pain that I didn't see yours. I was a lousy friend to you, Lacey."

"No. I was a lousy friend to you," Lacey insisted.

Jo laughed. "Okay, how about we concede that we were _both_ lousy and leave it at that. Deal?"

"Deal."

"So now we can get back to the topic at hand. Why aren't you and Danny together?"

Lacey dropped her head forward with a deep groan. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"Nope."

"Danny and I are just friends, Jo...same as you guys."

"Nuh-uh. It's not the same. First of all, I've never kissed Danny nor do I want to kiss him." She shuddered at the mere thought. "We've never had that kind of dynamic between us. Second of all, I've also never spent the entire night cuddled up in his arms. That would be all _you,_ Ms. Porter."

Lacey reached for a nearby bag of snacks and flicked a cheese doodle at her. "First, I kissed him when I was _eleven_ ," she clarified, "Second, I told you that nothing happened that night. I wasn't even intending to stay that long. We were watching the movie and then I fell asleep."

"In his bed," Jo added meaningfully, "Let's not forget that part. You fell asleep _in his bed_ and woke up the next day in his arms...because _friends_ totally do stuff like that." That remark earned her yet another cheese puff missile, which she deftly dodged. "You wouldn't be so sensitive about it if you didn't know I was right," she considered sagely.

"It's not that simple, Jo," Lacey hedged, flopping back onto her bed with a heavy sigh, "I'm so confused. I can't deny that I'm attracted to him and that I think about him a lot _but_... There's so much potential for disaster there. Being with him would be a huge risk. Danny could really break my heart."

Jo stretched out beside her and rolled a woebegone look over at Lacey. "Or it could be the most incredible thing you've ever experienced in your life," she considered softly, "The point is, you don't know and you won't ever know if you don't get out of your own head and take a chance, Lacey. You miss out on some pretty amazing things when you don't."

"You think so?"

"I know so," Jo replied, "When have I ever been wrong?"

"Like a lot actually. There was that time in second grade when you convinced me to jump out of the swing and I broke my wrist. Then there was the time we swiped your dad's cigars and experimented with smoking them at the fort and nearly started a forest fire..."

"...I puked for three days after that. Those things were vile!"

"And then there was that time you thought it was a good idea for you, Danny and me to hide in your parents closet so that we could scare them and then we all ended up being scarred for life," Lacey reminded her, "Your dad's naked ass is still branded into my eyeballs!"

Her response to that was a giggle and a shrug. "Okay. Maybe my ideas can be hit or miss on occasion. But, I still stand by what I said. Get out of your own way, Lacey Porter!"

"Okay, okay," Lacey sighed, "I'll _think_ about it. I make no promises on action, however."

Jo grumbled at the reply but then ruined her facade of annoyance by giggling again. She nudged Lacey with her shoulder. "Hey? You think it's too late to prank call him?"

"Are you kidding me?" Lacey laughed, "The night time is _always_ the right time."

While the girls preoccupied themselves with placing a snickering call to Danny pretending to be a girl who had inadvertently drunk dialed her boyfriend, neither of them took particular notice of Sarita as she lurked near the open doorway, listening to their every word.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**A/N: Well, this is my last update for a few days. Hope everyone enjoys their holidays and, as always, thank you for reading.**

* * *

 **Chapter Fourteen**

"Aww. You ladies brought me a gift," Danny joked lightly when he pulled open his front door and found Jo and Lacey standing on his front door. He tipped a glance to the huge cardboard box Lacey held balanced in her arms. "You shouldn't have." He stretched out his arms to accept the burden. "You look like you're about to keel over."

Lacey gladly transferred the box over to him with a murmur of thanks. "These are some of Regina's personal things," she explained as she and Jo shouldered past him into the house, "Her mother dropped them off this morning. She said she wanted me to have them. Jo and I thought we might be able to piece together how your dad knew Regina's. We figured you'd want to help us go through it."

"Sure," Danny agreed. He nodded for them to go into the living room and then followed behind them, lumbering heavily under the weight of the box. "How was the sleepover, by the way?" he wondered casually after depositing the container onto the coffee table, "Did you two have fun? Did you get enough rest? Or were you guys too busy prank calling people all night to actually sleep?"

The girls exchanged a furtive, laughing glance as Lacey slipped out of her jacket and tossed it onto a nearby chair. She used the task to conceal her reactive smile to Danny's accusation while Jo merely blinked at him in feigned ignorance. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Desai. What are these prank calls of which you speak?"

"I know it was you," Danny insisted dryly, "Lacey's uncontrollable giggling in the background was a dead giveaway. She has no chill."

"I do _not_ giggle!" Lacey denied hotly, fighting back her grin, "And, excuse me? I have _loads_ of chill!"

"Whatever," he grunted, "You two should really get some new material. You're slipping."

Despite the dry censure in his tone, Danny wasn't at all irritated with them. In fact, what he was feeling right then was strangely close to elation. It became clear to him from the moment he found Lacey and Jo standing on his front porch that they were well on their way to mending their broken friendship. The slumber party had turned out to be an excellent idea, definitely worth forgoing the late night, clandestine conversations that had become his and Lacey's normal of late. The girls seemed much more relaxed around one another than they had in weeks past. They actually traded smiles and exchanged a few beats of unspoken conversation between them.

When he had been younger, it used to annoy Danny greatly when he was excluded from their exclusive girl clique. Back then, he had often argued that if he didn't hold it against them for being girls then they shouldn't punish him for being a boy. The bottom line had been...he didn't like being left out. Now, as a young man who was a good deal more self secure than he had been at eleven, Danny welcomed their restricted closeness. Seeing them with their heads pressed together in much the way they had done as girls filled him with happiness and hope. Maybe, just maybe not everything in his life had been irrevocably ruined with the decision he had made five years prior.

Heartened by the thought, Danny approached the box with a curious smile, sifting lightly through the contents. "So what is all of this anyway?" he asked Lacey.

Jo settled down onto the sofa and braced her feet against the edge of the coffee table just as she had done hundreds of times in years long since passed. In like fashion, Lacey propped herself on the edge of the armrest just as she used to do. The scene was so reminiscent of the countless times they had spent together as children that Danny was momentarily struck speechless, overwhelmed with wistfulness and shaky emotion. He did his best to cover his sudden flare of vulnerability by continuing to filter through Regina's things.

"As far as I can tell," Jo remarked with general disinterest, "every piece of memorabilia Regina Crane ever owned is in that box."

Danny grunted. "No wonder it was so freaking heavy." And then he squinted at Lacey rather dubiously. "Why would her mom give you a box filled with Regina's junk? If she didn't want it, what makes her think you would?"

"It's not junk. These things were very important to Regina," Lacey explained, "Most people didn't know it but, Regina was actually pretty sentimental."

Jo tipped back her head and emitted a low, derisive sound from the back of her throat. "Yep. I'm sure she had a heart as big as the great outdoors."

"She had some good points," Lacey argued.

"Which she typically used to stab people in the back!"

"She's dead, Jo!" Lacey retorted somewhat irritably, "Is there really any harm in remembering some of the more positive things about her?"

The flashing glare of irritation Jo shot at her made her disagreement with that question abundantly clear. "Listen, Lacey, it's nice that you can have such positive memories about her but, in _my_ limited interactions with Regina Crane, I generally found her to be a bitch."

"Yeah, I know she could be heartless," Lacey acknowledged, "But she was so much more than that, Jo. No person is ever all good or all bad. We're all shades of dark and light. Danny should have taught you the truth about that better than anyone."

Danny jerked a startled glance in Lacey's direction. He was already cringing in reaction to their argument and Lacey's comment certainly didn't help matters. "Please leave me out of it," he pleaded weakly, "I'm sitting here minding my own business."

"I'm not saying that she didn't have her good points, Lacey," Jo conceded, "I'm saying that _I_ never saw them. We all have our different perspectives and my perspective was that Regina Crane could be a real piece of work! She was _your_ best friend, not mine!"

Lacey peered at her with eyes narrowed in incredulous speculation. "Is that what's bothering you right now? You don't like that I was friends with Regina?"

Jo's flinty expression belied her indifferent shrug. "I don't have any thoughts about it either way. But, since you brought it up, yeah, it does irritate me a little that _she's_ the one you decided to replace me with!"

"I wasn't replacing you, Jo."

"Like hell you weren't! You wanted someone to fill the empty slot for BFF in your life! I just wish you'd chosen someone half human to do it!"

"Oh my God! I can't believe you're actually jealous of a dead girl right now!"

"I am not!"

"Oh, whatever, Jo! That's such bullsh-,"

"-Hey, hey now!" Danny smoothly inserted himself before the two could begin any back and forth bickering. "Come on, you guys! What the hell is this? How do you go from giggling with each other one minute, to picking at each other the next? I don't get it! Is it a girl thing? I can't keep up with the constant mood swinging."

Jo regarded him with an owlish expression, the irritation she'd been exhibiting only seconds earlier dropped in an instant. "What's with all the hand wringing, Desai? We're just having a discussion. Geez. Calm your teats."

"Yeah, get a grip," Lacey interjected, "Jo and I butt heads. It's our thing. Just because we don't happen to agree on everything, it doesn't mean that we're going to suddenly stop trying to be friends again."

Danny appeared less than convinced. "Isn't that what happened the first time around?"

Belatedly discerning that he was truly upset, Lacey reached over to cover his hand where it rested against the top of the box. "Jo and I made a lot of mistakes the first time around, Danny but, we're much better now," she acknowledged softly. She traded a brief glance of understanding with Jo. "We're determined not the make the same mistakes again."

"But we're not always going to be on the same page about things," Jo warned him gently, "It's not like we ever were but...we _will_ always have each other's backs. Try not to worry so much."

Mollified by their reassurances as well as the restored peace between them, Danny resumed combing the contents of the box. "So let's see what we have here." He plucked out each item one by one, categorizing them aloud as he went. "We have one stuffed teddy bear," he announced, "complete with a snappy bowtie." His tone of voice was less than impressed with the find. He and Jo exchanged a mocking eye roll.

"His name is Mr. Doodles, guys!" Lacey spoke up defensively, "Regina's dad gave him to her when she was six years old."

Danny passed the bear to Lacey. "Well, since you both obviously have history together, maybe you should hold onto him," he deadpanned. Lacey made a face at him. Danny responded to that with a glamorous smile. "Moving on then." He pulled the next item from the box, a heavy crown made up of sparkling rhinestones. "It's a tiara," he announced needlessly.

Jo snorted a dubious laugh. "Why doesn't that even surprise me?"

"It's from her beauty pageant days," Lacey explained, "She won little Miss New York twice."

Danny thumbed through a stack of glossy black and white photographs that featured Regina in various poses. "That explains all the head shots then." He filtered through more of the contents. "So, we've got a handful of unmarked cds, a manila envelope filled with..." he peeked inside to glimpse the contents, "...dozens of birthday cards. Uh...we've got a leather bound journal..."

At that, Jo perked up a bit. "Oooh, that might be promising."

"...and _this_ might be even more so," Danny remarked as he pulled a small, gray metal container approximately 12 by 12 in length and width and six inches in height from the very bottom of the box. It was secured tightly with a combination lock. That alone immediately peaked Danny's curiosity. He tested the weight in his hands. "It feels heavy. I wonder what Regina keeps in here."

Both he and Jo turned an expectant look towards Lacey. She shook her head. "Don't look at me! I have no idea what's in there. I've never seen that box before."

Danny lifted a thoughtful eyebrow. "Hmm. That's interesting."

"Maybe her dad gave it to her," Lacey considered.

Jo blew out a frustrated sigh. "There's no way we're going to crack that combination."

"We might not have to crack it at all," Lacey said, "Regina was one of the laziest people I've ever known. She couldn't be bothered to memorize anything. I'm willing to lay down money she wrote the combination down someplace where she could reference it quickly."

Danny grunted. "We just need to figure out where."

Jo nudged Lacey. "And you're sure she never gave you any ideas on what she might have kept in that box, Lace?"

"It could be stuff from her father," she theorized, "Regina was always pretty tight-lipped about that."

Danny regarded her with a questioning look. "What was the deal with him anyway?"

"He was embezzling from his company," Lacey revealed, "It turns out that he had this whole pyramid scheme going and he'd bilked people out of thousands and thousands of dollars. He was going to go to prison for a long time and I guess he decided he couldn't handle that. He hung himself in their garage."

Jo shuddered, feeling sympathy for the late Regina Crane creep into her heart unbidden. "That's awful."

"Regina was the one who found him. Her entire family was devastated. They lost their house and most of their money. Her mom had to go back to work. If it wasn't for Regina's uncle, they might have been left completely destitute."

Danny dropped into an adjacent chair with a dazed expression. "Why does that sound so freaking familiar?"

Both Lacey and Jo blinked at him curiously but it was Lacey who asked, "What do you mean?"

He regarded them with wary hesitation at first, as if he were internally weighing the wisdom of sharing what he knew with them. It hurt both girls that he still seemed so reluctant to trust them fully but, for Lacey in particular, it was a forceful reminder to her that she and Danny could never have a romantic relationship...at least, not the type of relationship she wanted. She needed to have access to all parts of him and, clearly, he wasn't ready to give that to anyone.

Jo blew out an exasperated groan when Danny continued to vacillate. "We're trying to help you, Danny. We can't do that if you don't tell us what's going on!"

"Okay, fine. Apparently, my father was into some of the same activities as Regina's dad," he confessed finally, "That's the whole reason my mom and I are stuck here in Green Grove. All of our assets are tied up with the government while the Feds investigate my dad's business records. We couldn't afford to go anywhere else."

Lacey nibbled at her lip as a new idea occurred to her. "Maybe that's the reason your dad was writing all those checks to Regina's dad," she considered, "Maybe they were business partners."

Danny rose to his feet and started to pace. "It's possible," he said but without much conviction, "I just feel like all we have is a bunch of conjecture right now and, in the meantime, I'm still Chief Masterson's prime suspect for Regina's murder."

He thought of the necklace, tucked discreetly between his box spring and mattress and knew that if it was ever discovered, it would surely be the linchpin in his conviction. Finding the truth went far beyond satisfying his curiosity over his father's double life. It had literally become a matter of survival for Danny because there was no way he would make it if he went back to prison a second time. He might have to seriously consider Robert Crane's alternate option.

As if she sensed his morbid thoughts and was saddened by them, Lacey reassured him softly, "Please don't give up. We'll find the truth, Danny." Both girls converged on him in a simultaneous group hug. Danny melted against them with a grateful sigh and brought his arms around them to tug them even closer. He was further soothed when Lacey whispered, "I promise we'll figure out what all of this means."

Jo was the first to extract herself from their group embrace. "Unfortunately, we'll probably have to continue that tomorrow. Lacey and I told her Mom that we were going to Johnnycakes for a milkshake and then she was going to take me straight home. My parents will be expecting us any minute."

"Okay," Danny sighed, clearly disappointed by the knowledge that they had to leave, "I'll help you get Regina's stuff out to the car."

After he finished helping them pack the box into the trunk of Lacey's Jetta, the three said their goodbyes and Danny watched them drive off together with a despondent sigh. When he reentered the house, he found his mother lingering in the foyer with a sympathetic smile. "It won't always be like this, Danny," she told him, "Just give everyone some time to calm down and get used to the idea of you being around again."

"I think you're being naive," he replied wearily but without his usual biting sarcasm, "People are never going to be comfortable with me here, Mom. I'm always gonna be that kid who murdered his aunt while she was napping on the couch."

"You know, I've never understood that, Danny."

"Understood what?"

"How you supposedly murdered Tara but didn't have a single defensive wound on you."

Her words lacked any real accusation but Danny's reaction was potent nonetheless. He swiveled around to face her with a dismayed expression, clearly blindsided by the observation. For one, startling moment he was left completely without his usual defenses. He stared at his mother in wide-eyed horror, his breath coming in quickened pants. Karen actually feared he might burst into tear right then and the realization stunned her.

As if she was dealing with a frightened and wounded animal, Karen cautiously approached her skittish son. "Why do you think that is, sweetheart?"

"Please don't do this..." he pleaded a little desperately, "Please don't make me talk about it."

"Danny, you can tell me," Karen assured him, "You can tell me and I'll keep you safe."

He took a reflexive back from her, shaking his head in denial. "I told you I can't. I can't talk about that day with you or anyone. Let it go, Mother. It doesn't matter anymore what happened that day. The damage is already done."

Karen didn't try to stop him when he retreated to his room. She knew better than to push him further but now that the theory had taken up residence in her mind, it was quickly becoming a fertile thing. The day of Danny's arrest had gone by in a drunken haze for her but there were a few things that she remembered in particular. The inexplicable scratches and bruises that had littered Vikram's neck and forearms as well as the deep lacerations that had been found in the creases of Danny's hands. He'd actually needed stitches afterward.

The official story had been that Vikram had received his wounds while fighting to get control of his homicidal son and that Danny, because of the force he had used to pull on the rope and choke the life from Tara, had actually sliced into his own hands. At the time, the evidence had seemed to cut and dried and Danny had so readily confessed that no one had looked any deeper. No one had questioned. Karen regretted that profoundly.

She wished now that she had asked more questions back then. She wished that she hadn't chosen, instead, to dive into the bottom of a wine bottle and literally not emerge again for the next several years. And she especially wished that she had been a better mother to her deeply traumatized son. It made her all the more grateful that he had Lacey and Jo's friendship and support. Karen knew that she should probably not encourage either girls defiance of their parents' wishes but she simply couldn't bring herself to turn them away. As far as Danny was concerned, they were the only two people he had in the entire world. That was the very reason that, when Lacey Porter returned unexpectedly an hour later, Karen Desai did not hesitate to invite her inside.

"Danny?" she called to him, "You have company!"

He came thumping down the steps a few minutes later, stopping short when he saw Lacey standing there. "What are you doing here?"

Karen chose that moment to discreetly excuse herself as Lacey explained, "You just looked so sad when Jo and I left earlier. I wanted to check in and make sure you were okay."

Danny couldn't help but recoil from her pity. "I'm fine," he reassured her tersely, "You should go before you get into trouble with your mom."

"She thinks I'm on a date with Archie. So, if you want to hang out, I've got the time."

He might have been amused by the fact she was using her boyfriend as a cover if he wasn't so offended by the idea that she was placating him. "I don't need you feeling sorry for me, Lace."

"Who said I was feeling sorry for you?" she retorted, "Maybe I just wanted to spend some time with you, Desai. Besides...I _did_ kinda promise that I would make you a welcome home batch of cookies. Remember?"

Danny was unsuccessful at biting back his answering smile. "Well, you know the deal. As long as they're chocolate chip."

Twenty minutes later, they stood side by side before the large granite island in the Desai kitchen. Before them were spread all the ingredients they would need for making Lacey's grandmother's super secret recipe to the 'best chocolatey chocolate chip cookies ever." Danny eyed each of the items before shooting Lacey a dubious, sideways glance.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing here? The last time you tried to cook for me I ended up with a nasty case of salmonella poisoning."

"I was ten and it was my first time cooking an actual meal," Lacey burst out hotly, "You gotta stop living in the past. Who do you think has been making dinner for me and Clara all of these years? Just ask her. I'm a wizard in the kitchen."

"A wizard, huh?" he echoed with side-eying skepticism. Lacey yanked up a wooden spoon and brandished it at him in mock threat. "Okay, okay," Danny laughed in surrender, "How is your sister, by the way?"

"A pain in my ass," Lacey sighed, "She thinks she's a woman. It would be hilarious if it weren't so sad."

Danny chuckled. "What is she now? Thirteen?"

"Almost. But she acts like she's thirty." Lacey angled a small smile at Danny. "She misses you, you know? She asks about you all the time."

"Yeah, well I would drop by to say 'hello' if I didn't think it would make your mother's head rotate 360 degrees and then pop off her neck and soar into orbit," he returned dryly.

She compressed her lips tightly to keep from smiling in response to his sarcasm. "She'll get over it, Danny. They all will...eventually. In the meantime, we'll do what we have to do."

"I don't like forcing you and Jo to lie to your parents. It's definitely not helping the situation you've got going on with your mom."

Lacey began readying the ingredients for the mixer, her jaw tight when she said, "Nothing is going to help my situation with my mom."

"Because you won't try," Danny admonished softly.

"No. Because I'm too angry. I feel like if I try to talk to her about what I'm feeling, I'm going to start screaming and never stop. That's counterproductive for everyone." She hitched her chin towards the wet ingredients at the far end of the counter. "Go ahead and start mixing the eggs while I finish with the dry stuff," she instructed.

Danny dutifully began cracking eggs into an empty bowl. "I can't help but notice how you're always accusing me of stuffing my emotions when you do the exact same thing," he observed, "There's a word for that, Lacey Porter."

"If you call me a hypocrite I swear I'm going to throat punch you."

He affected a mock shudder at her threat. "Ooh, so violent. I tremble with fear."

"I don't 'stuff' my emotions, Danny," Lacey denied softly, "I _reason_ past them. I weigh my options. And I take the high road."

"You stuff," he summarized succinctly.

"It's actually an age old tactic to project your own insecurities onto others," she informed him sagely, "There's a word for that, Danny."

"Yeah, you should know that better than anyone."

"Just shut up and beat the eggs, Desai."

She talked him through the remainder of the steps, delighting internally at what seemed to be his genuine enjoyment over helping her in the kitchen. The domesticity of the moment was not lost on Lacey. Briefly, she allowed herself to entertain the thought of future times in the kitchen with Danny, talking about everything and nothing at all, and simply enjoying one another's company.

In unguarded interest, she studied his profile as he diligently whipped the butter into creamy smoothness and then gradually began adding the sugar. She found herself strangely enamored with the slope of his nose and his endearingly pouty mouth and the way the short ends of his hair curled adorably around his ears. Lacey couldn't recall a time in her life when she had ever enjoyed looking at another human being the way she enjoyed looking at Danny Desai right then. Everything about him fascinated her.

Without really thinking about it, she blurted, "You're really pretty, you know that?"

Danny did a sudden double-take, nearly adding too much vanilla extract into the sugar/butter mixture in his discomfiture. "What? You think I'm what?"

Lacey shrugged lightly in an effort to cover her embarrassment. "You are. You're beautiful, Danny. Inside and out. You didn't hear that enough growing up. I just...I think you should know that. You should know how amazing you are."

"Thanks. You too," he murmured in a stirring tone, "I mean...I think you're beautiful too, Lacey...and amazing."

"Thank you," Lacey whispered. They stared at one another for a long time, their eyes dipping unconsciously to each other's lips in unspoken appeal. Finally, Lacey cleared her throat, her gaze darting away nervously. "We should probably add the flour now."

Danny nodded and inhaled a shuddering breath. "Sure. Of course."

Unfortunately, before Lacey could fully talk him through the process, Danny dumped the entire measurement of flour into the mixing bowl and clicked the mixer onto its highest setting. A plume of flour suddenly exploded from the mixing bowl directly into his face. Lacey couldn't help herself. She dissolved into a fit of giggles which only worsened when Danny turned to face her with a pouting glower. She tried to stifle her laughter behind her hand but the effort was useless.

"I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry," she snickered hysterically, "It's not funny! Not at all. But I can't stop laughing!"

"I can tell. I'm glad my misfortune amuses you, Lace." Danny lurched blindly towards the kitchen sink, attempting to spit out the tasteless remnants of flour that clung to his tongue. He was diligently rinsing his mouth when a chuckling Lacey approached him with a wet paper towel. Danny continued to sulk as she began wiping away the splotches of flour that clung to his cheeks, eyelashes and neck.

"Oh, don't be such a baby about it," she giggled, "You have to admit, that was really funny."

"You knew that was going to happen. I think you set me up."

Lacey rolled her lips inward to stifle her answering giggle. "You're giving me too much credit."

"I don't put it past you, Porter."

"Actually, I tried to warn you about putting the setting up too high but you were too fast for me. I swear I didn't plan for that to happen. It was just a happy coincidence." She turned away from him briefly to remoisten the paper towel before resuming the brisk task of cleaning him up. When the last traces of flour were finally scrubbed from his face and throat, she said, "There you go. Good as new," before pecking a quick, impulsive kiss to his lips. She had meant the gesture to be a playful one but the action provoked a response that was entirely different. The full enormity of what she had just done didn't fully hit Lacey until she reared back and found Danny regarding her with a deeply intense stare.

Her stammered apology died in her throat when he suddenly crushed his lips to hers and began kissing her with unrestrained hunger. She squeaked in surprise but didn't push him away. Instead, once she recovered from her shock, she pulled him closer. Weeks of repressed attraction combusted between them and quickly spiraled out of control. Lacey cradled his face in her hands and initially guided the kiss, showing him by example what she liked and wanted before giving herself over to learn what he liked as well. She opened her mouth to the darting demands of his tongue and stroked it with her own.

Danny framed her slim waist with his hands and lifted her up against the sink. Without ever breaking their frantic kiss, he pushed her skirt higher and instinctively fit himself into the space she left for him between her legs. He scoured her cheek and neck with his lips, delighting in her soft moans of pleasure before returning to taste her mouth again and again. Their hands raced over each other in fevered urgency, fingers bunching into clothing, tunneling frenetically through tousled hair and biting into flesh in a bid to get closer. They began rocking against each other in the primal need to satisfy the throbbing ache that began to build inside them, so lost in their passion that they didn't immediately detect his mother's approach until Karen cleared her throat loudly.

They sprang apart so swiftly that Lacey nearly toppled off of the sink in the wake of Danny's haste to put distance between them. She hopped down to her feet and deftly straightened her skirt, guilt and embarrassment stamped all over her face. Her lips tingled and throbbed in the aftermath. She checked the reflexive impulse to lick them.

Danny was equally mortified, highly mindful of his body's heightened state of sexual arousal though he tried to conceal it as inconspicuously as he could. Yet, despite his mounting horror, he just couldn't seem to calm himself down. Thwarted desire had temporarily addled his brain so that he couldn't even begin to explain away to his mother what she'd just witnessed. His blood still pumped hotly through his veins, the throbbing pulses consolidating painfully in his groin. Neither of he nor Lacey could find to wherewithal to meet one another's eyes nor could they look directly at his mother. It was an extremely awkward moment for everyone involved.

As the heat of her ardor started to fade, the full enormity of what she'd just done began to settle on Lacey. Overwhelmed and shaking, she did the one thing she always did when she felt cornered and frightened. She ran.

"Oh my God, I'm...I'm so sorry," she stammered, already retreating for the exit in a half sprint, half stumble, "I gotta go! Thank you for letting me visit, Mrs. Desai, but I...I really gotta go now!"

"Lacey, wait! Wait!"

Danny charged after her but the effort proved to be futile because by the time he made it to the front door, she was already inside her Jetta and speeding away from the curb. He slumped forward in the doorframe with a remorseful groan. "Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. _Damn it!_ " He was still lamenting everything that had just transpired and berating himself for his loss of self-control when he suddenly sensed his mother's presence behind him. Danny slowly pivoted to face her with another low groan.

"Please, Mom...I don't need a lecture right now," he whispered mournfully.

"I'm not going to lecture you," Karen reassured him, "Just promise me, when the time comes, that you and Lacey will be responsible. That's all I ask. Okay, Danny?"

At the precise moment, Danny had serious doubts that Lacey would ever speak to him again much less have sex with him but, numb and heartsick, he simply nodded in weary agreement to his mother's worried request. "Sure. Okay."


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

Lacey was, once again, back to ignoring him and, somehow, Danny found this newest round of silence more excruciating than the cold shoulder she had given when he first returned to Green Grove. At least, back then he had been uncertain of her feelings and equally unsure of her desire to make a place for him in her life. Watching Lacey make time with her douchebag jock boyfriend had not thrilled him in the least but he'd had no right to make any claim on her so he sucked it up. Technically, Danny realized he _still_ had no right to lay claim to Lacey but, in the wake of that kiss, it felt like everything between them had changed. If he hadn't felt possessive towards her before, he certainly did after that kiss.

Now, watching her hold hands with Archie Yates in the hallway and give him kisses made Danny want to punch through a wall. When he hadn't held out much hope of anything good happening between him and Lacey, he had kept his expectations low and that had worked for him. Now, he knew what she _tasted_ like and what she _felt_ like. He knew that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her. He had no doubts about her feelings which made her blatant rejection of him now even more painful. Not only was she denying him, she was denying them both an opportunity to be something _more_.

For the entirety of the school day, Lacey deftly evaded all overtures Danny made to talk. If he approached her when she was with Jo, she suddenly remembered she had someplace else to be. If he came down one end of the corridor, she would perform an abrupt about-face and disappear down the opposite end. She wouldn't even _look_ at him.

Her skittish reaction left him aggravated beyond belief. All night long as he lay in his bed, he had replayed that kiss in the kitchen over and over again in his mind. He couldn't forget how warm and soft she had felt in his arms or how eagerly she had fit her body to his or the soft moans that had escaped her when he touched her just right. The memory of it was with him almost every second of that day. Conversely, however, Lacey appeared to have put it out of her mind with relative ease. She fell right back into her usual routine with Archie as if nothing at all had happened.

By the time the school day was nearing its conclusion, Danny had endured about as much as he could. Preparing himself for her rejection but stubbornly resolved to push a conversation between them nonetheless, Danny seized the opportunity to corner an unsuspecting Lacey at her locker. She was so distracted with arranging her books that she didn't immediately notice his approach until he was only a few feet away.

"We need to talk," he told her just as she prepared to bolt.

Lacey dropped her eyes and turned away. "I've got nothing to say. I really need to go."

"Are you sure? Not even about that kiss, Lace?" he called at her retreating back, "You've got nothing to say about that either?"

He couldn't see her face right then but if the way her back and shoulders went so swiftly rigid was any clue, Danny imagined that Lacey wanted to throttle him within an inch of his life. His bold statement was enough to stop her in her tracks. More than that. She whirled back to face him with a humiliated expression, both shocked and mortified that he'd actually put their business out there so publicly. She threw a hasty, disconcerted glance around them for a quick inventory of any possible witnesses. Once she had determined she was mostly unscathed in that regard, Lacey fixed Danny with a murderous glare that promised retribution. She stalked towards him and then past him, grabbing a handful of his backpack as she did so before dragging him, none too gently, into the nearest utility closet.

Before Danny could make some flippant remark about her eagerness to get him alone, Lacey rounded on him with a hard shove and hissed wrathfully, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Danny mostly took her volatile outburst in stride. "I told you," he reiterated softly, "We need to talk about that kiss and what it meant."

Lacey fell back into a defensive stance, all her earlier anger abruptly washed away in a wave of uncertainty and awkwardness. "Danny, that kiss...it was a mistake," she uttered thickly, "I don't know what came over me but, that can _never_ happen again. I'm sorry if you got the wrong impression."

"And what impression is that?" he challenged, "That you're into me? Because I don't think that's wrong at all, Lacey."

"We...we were just caught up in the moment," she prevaricated desperately, "It...it didn't mean anything real."

He surveyed her with wounded brown eyes. "How can you say that? Lacey, that kiss is the most real thing I've felt in five years. It's _all_ I've been able to think about." Danny stepped closer, his words becoming a trembling whisper when he added, "You can't tell me that you haven't thought about it too."

She whimpered his name, not wanting to be affected by his proximity but feeling herself drawn to him nonetheless. "Don't do this to me. I can't..." she managed in hoarse denial, "I have a boyfriend, Danny, and he matters to me. He deserves better than this."

"'And _I_ don't deserve better?" he retorted in quiet accusation, "What the hell is that?"

"I'm trying to be fair."

Danny stepped even closer, his jaw tight and his eyes probing when he said, "You wanna know what I think, Lace? I think that you use Archie to create a barrier between us. You don't have a problem not 'being fair' to him when you're using him a as a cover to sneak over to my house but it suddenly becomes all about him when you don't want to deal with what's between us.

"He's a convenient excuse so you can keep me at arm's length," he told her flatly, "I don't think you're half as into him as you like to pretend. And you know what else? I'm not buying it anymore."

Recognizing that she couldn't righteously deny a single accusation he had made against her, Lacey took refuge in her anger instead. "Is that what you think, Danny?" she spat, "Well, screw you! You think you can just walk back into my life and turn it upside down on a dime?" She raked him with a scathing glance. "No. That's not going to happen!"

Danny bit out a terse expletive and scrambled to halt her exit. "Lacey, wait! I didn't mean that!" he cried, catching hold of her forearm when she tried to stalk away from him, "I shouldn't have accused you like that! Please! Don't leave it like this."

She whipped around to face him again so quickly and with such an intense glower that, for a split second, Danny feared she was going to smack him. He was prepared for the blow but not the moment when she suddenly reared forward, cradled his face between her hands and sealed her lips to his in a breathless kiss. She darted her tongue into his mouth, eager for the taste of him after denying herself the entire day.

Danny recovered from his shock pretty quickly. His arms went around her without hesitation. He pressed one hand into the small of her back to bring her closer against him and plunged the other into the wavy hair at her nape. He tangled his fingers there and cradled the back of her head so that he could return the kiss with equal ferocity. He sucked on her plump lower lip, lightly stroked against her questing tongue with his own.

They groaned together, their breathing coming in short, labored pants as their mutual need for one another grew in intensity. Spurred on by the desperate need to sooth the aching pressure building in their cores, they bumped clumsily into the metal shelving, upsetting the supplies housed there as they angled themselves closer together. Spray bottles and industrial cleaners teetered and scattered but Lacey and Danny paid them no heed as they kissed again and again.

Hungry to taste every part of her he could, Danny dipped his head to sample the delicate skin of her ear, jaw and neck. Encouraged by her moans, he swept his hand over her breast, familiarizing himself with its supple roundness and turgid center. Lacey fit herself closer against him and, in turn, he deftly walked her backwards so that she became trapped between the wall and his thrusting body. It was only when he slipped his hand down between her jean clad thighs with the intention of parting her legs so he could fit himself between them and bring her into vibrant contact with his throbbing arousal that Lacey remembered herself.

With a small, cry of self-disgust, she braced both of her hands against his chest and abruptly shoved him away. After stumbling back several steps, Danny regarded her in bereft confusion, his lips swollen and pink, his dark eyes glassy with desire. Undeterred, he whispered her name and moved towards her again. Lacey sidestepped his attempt to pull her back into his arms, recognizing that if she let him get close to her then it would be all over and then she would never be able to do what she needed to do. She didn't know what it was about Danny that caused her to abandon her self-control so quickly but, she did know, the more she kissed him, the more her resolve to shield her heart from him weakened.

"Stop it," she ordered with a broken sob, "You can't touch me again. This is so wrong!"

"Tell me why?" he burst out in frustration, "I don't get it! What's wrong about us being together, Lacey? I really can't keep up with all these mixed signals from you. You call me in the middle of the night because you say you need to hear my voice but then you swear you just want to be friends. You kiss me and then you run away. You ignore me all day long, swear nothing between us was real and _then_ you kiss me again! What the hell do you want?"

"I'm scared okay!" she cried harshly, shocking them both into silence with her vehemence. She made a deliberate effort to soften her tone when she added, "You scare the crap out of me, Danny, and I don't know how to stop being afraid."

Danny's expression became shuttered with her admission. He slumped forward with a sorrowful, little moan. "Lacey...I...I would never hurt you," he stammered out thickly, "I...you have to know that I would never put my hands on you in violence. I couldn't do that."

"I know that," she whispered, "I know you could never hurt me like that, Danny. I'm talking about you breaking my heart. You can't promise you won't do that, can you?" Considering all the secrets he was currently keeping from her and the lies of omission he had told her, Danny couldn't in good conscience make such a promise. Lacey read the truth easily on his face. She dropped her shoulders with a defeated sigh. "I can't keep doing this with you. We'll just end up destroying our friendship."

"I don't believe that," he murmured in quiet protest.

Lacey continued on as if he hadn't said a word. "This is not who I am. I'm not my mother. I'm not a cheater."

"This isn't cheating. How can it be cheating when _we_ started first?" Danny argued softly, "It was always going to be me and you, Lace." He started to close the distance between them in careful, measured steps. "You know that, right? Running from this, _from me_ , isn't going to change that. You're not being fair to me or yourself _or_ your so-called boyfriend either."

Rather than disarming her, however, his words filled Lacey with righteous anger instead. In her eyes, Danny was oversimplifying a situation that _he_ had made complicated. The way he had seemingly absolved himself of all guilt made her want to slap him. When he dared to reach for her again, she furiously swatted away his hand.

"And exactly what will _staying_ accomplish?" she spat, "I have no idea what we could have been, Danny, because you made a decision that blew all of our lives to hell and then you went to prison for five years! We never had a chance to figure out what we could be and that's on _you_!" She surveyed him with a scowling expression, her brown eyes brimming with uncontained emotion. "Now you have to live with the consequences."

Danny didn't attempt to stop her retreat a second time. He recognized that pushing her now would only further deteriorate communication between them. Besides that, she had valid reasons for her hesitance. He couldn't make her the promises she needed and so, it was just as she had said, completely on _him_. Consequently, he watched helplessly as she walked away from him without a backwards glance.

Once outside of the utility closet, Lacey immediately lost much of her fierce indignation but she remained as confused as ever. Distance from Danny alone wasn't enough to bring her any real clarity. Her feelings for him were strong and undeniable and, in spite of all her fervent denials to the contrary, growing more and more real by the day. He had been right in his accusation. She _was_ using Archie to create a barrier between them. It was nothing she had done consciously but now that the charge had been made aloud, Lacey couldn't avoid the stinging truth of it.

Archie was in love with her. He was committed to their relationship and making her happy. Even after she had tested his patience and loyalty time after time, he had never abandoned her. And then there was Danny "life ruiner" Desai, the very epitome of the words "trouble walking." He was unpredictable, secretive, moody, mistrustful and plagued by a plethora of emotional issues as extensive as her own. He was also pragmatic, funny and extremely resilient. Lacey admired those things about him and if those latter traits were all with which she had to contend, Danny would certainly be ideal boyfriend material. However, it was the unpredictable, secretive, mistrustful part of his personality that fueled her reluctance to "go there" with him at all.

Unfortunately, Lacey was left with two choices. She could either dump her devoted boyfriend of nearly a year to get with a guy who possessed an abundance of trust issues and had every capability of shredding her heart into emotional confetti. _Or_ she could remain within her stable, steady relationship where she knew what to expect and, at least, maintained some modicum of control. Pierced with guilt that there should even be a choice at all and further filled with self-loathing over the heated makeout session she'd had with Danny in the janitor's closet, Lacey mentally prepared herself to meet Archie out on the soccer field and watch him practice. She knew that cheering him on from the sidelines wouldn't even begin to make up for the betrayal she had dealt him but Lacey thought, at least, she could make every effort to be a supportive girlfriend.

She whooped and hollered over each play Archie made from the bleachers, feeling a bit heartened when he would occasionally toss her a pleased, cocky grin. However, Lacey's tentative good mood lasted about as long as it took Sarita to flounce down beside her. They hadn't spoken to one another since the fallout at her slumber party the other night and, given the latent enmity between them, Lacey didn't expect that Sarita had anything good to say to her. Her former best friend did not disappoint.

"I wonder what Archie would say if he knew you and the Socio were spending time together in the janitor's closet at school," Sarita remarked casually, "I'll bet he'd be real interested to hear about that."

"Is your life so empty that you have to spend your time stalking me, Sarita?" Lacey clipped tartly, "There's nothing to tell Archie. Danny and I were just talking earlier. That's what friends do. They talk."

"Yeah, but we both know you wanna be _more_ than just his friend, don't you?" Lacey made no response to that and so she added with deceptive softness, "I heard you and G.I. Jane talking the other night. I know you want him, Lacey."

Lacey glared at her coldly. "That's none of your business."

"I think it definitely _is_ my business," Sarita stressed, "Archie is my friend too. He's completely serious about you and you're just stringing him along."

"I don't have to explain myself to you."

"God, Lacey! Even if you can't stop to think about what you're throwing away with him, at least think about your own safety! Regina was all hot to nail some Socio ass too and look what happened to her."

"You need to let that go, Sarita. Danny did _not_ kill her."

"So he claims but, the police have other ideas."

Lacey pinned her with a steely look. "I know he didn't do it."

"I hope you're willing to stake your life on that," Sarita tsked, "because it might just cost you."

"Sarita, what do you want?" Lacey sighed wearily, "I know you don't actually care about what happens to me so drop the phony concern and just get to the point already."

If possible, Sarita's demeanor became even frostier, more due to Lacey's assumption that she didn't care than her dismissive attitude. "Fine," she snapped, "Archie doesn't deserve to have you two timing him with the town's resident psycho. So, either you tell him the truth, or I will. It's as simple as that."

Lacey watched Sarita flounce away, her stress levels increasing to new heights. She couldn't help but feel cornered. It was all going from bad to worse. She could take her chances that her former friend was bluffing or she could go to Archie and confess her confused feelings for Danny Desai and possibly beg for his forgiveness. But the more Lacey contemplated that latter option, the more she came to realize that Danny had made several valid points when they'd been together earlier, the most prominent being that she _wasn't_ being fair to Archie. She seriously doubted that he was yearning to be saddled with a girlfriend who stayed with him out of pity and self-preservation and was mostly lukewarm about intimacy with him especially when, at the same time, she was dry humping her childhood friend every chance she got.

Keeping quiet then wasn't an option anymore either. It went beyond the possibility of Sarita telling. It simply came down to doing the right thing and Lacey absolutely knew that holding onto Archie when she couldn't love him the way he wanted was not the right thing.

Her decision made, Lacey loitered outside of the boys' locker room following practice, waiting for the moment when Archie emerged. He was usually the last to leave. In the past, that had afforded them with a little private time to make out before they joined his fellow teammates at Johnnycakes for burgers afterward. That particular evening, however, Lacey had other plans.

When Archie finally emerged from the locker room, his dark blonde hair still damp from the shower and a happy smile wreathing his face, Lacey felt terrible. Her feelings only worsened when he ducked his head to kiss her and she had no choice but to turn her head aside to avoid it. Archie favored her with a puzzled frown. One glance at her remote facial expression had him groaning.

"Okay, what's wrong?"

"I need to talk to you about something," Lacey sighed, "Do...do you think we could go someplace less public?"

Archie straightened, his Adam's apple bobbing spasmodically as he regarded her. "Right here is just fine, Lacey. Say what you need to say."

"So...I've been thinking a lot about what you told me the other week," she began in a halting tone, "and...I never, ever thought you could feel that way about me, Archie."

"Why not? We have a really good thing, Lacey. I think we could really go the distance...if you let us."

"That's the thing. I don't think we can," Lacey refuted gruffly as she lifted her sorrowful eyes to his questioning ones, "Archie, I care about you so much and I...I think you're a great guy but... I don't love you. I'm sorry."

The admission stung. Archie was hurt but he wasn't entirely surprised. He'd had some inkling that they were headed down this path when he first said the words and she'd reacted as if he'd kicked her dog. She hadn't wanted to hear it. Archie had staunchly ignored all the possible implications behind her reaction. It was especially easy to do that when it seemed like things between them were starting to improve. Now, he recognized that he had only been deceiving himself. He blinked against the moisture that reflexively gathered in his eyes.

"Are you saying you want to break up?" he asked, "You're done with me? Is that it?"

Lacey confirmed that with quick nod. "I never meant to hurt you, Archie," she blurted out sorrowfully, "You're such a great guy and-,"

"-Save it, okay!" he bit out sharply, "I don't want to hear it. Because when you're done making your pretty speech we're still going to be over, Lacey." Archie's sadness was gradually replaced with gathering anger. "Is this because of Desai?"

"This is because I'm trying to be fair to you," Lacey evaded softly, "You deserve to be happy."

Conversely, her lack of direct answer was answer enough for Archie. He snorted bitterly. "Why am I not surprised? God, Lacey, if you think you can have a future with that guy, you're just fooling yourself," he warned her, "He's going to ruin you." He swept her with a doleful once-over. "It's already started."

Lacey walked away from him on trembling legs, her heart quivering with his ominous prediction. Still, she remained firm in her resolve not to turn back. She couldn't afford to be afraid anymore. This time, she was going to be willing to take the gamble and see what resulted. With that determination in mind, Lacey got in her car and drove to the city park. She was going to the fort. She knew almost instinctively that Danny would be there already.

When she found him sitting in front of the fire pit upon her arrival, Lacey couldn't help but smile a bit at his predictability. She supposed, in his own way, Danny had a certain steadiness about himself as well. Upon her entry, he stared at her in startled silence, as if he couldn't quite believe she was standing there. She shattered the resounding quiet between them with the first words that leapt into her mind.

"I broke up with Archie."

Relief briefly flickered over Danny's features before his expression became guarded once more. He slowly rose to his feet and began to close the gap between them. "So what does that mean, Lacey?" he whispered, "What happens now?"

"I guess it means I don't want you to break my heart," she whispered back.

He lifted his hands to gently frame her face, his thumbs sweeping over her cheekbones in languid caresses. "I can't promise you that," he told her, "I'm going to screw up. I'm going to break your heart, Lace. But I promise, when I do, I'm also going to do everything in my power to put it back together again." His gaze became imploring and soft as he added in a hoarse plea, "Can that be enough for you?"

She jerked a nod just as he started to lean forward to kiss her. Lacey closed her eyes in breathy anticipation. "Yeah," she sighed against his lips as he kissed her with surprising gentleness, "It's enough."

While Danny Desai was finally beginning to feel like something in his life might actually go right for a change, across town, Chief Kyle Masterson sat holed away in his private office, feeling like his murder case was slowly beginning to fall apart. He stared at the enhanced, forensic still capture of Regina Crane's missing necklace and dragged a weary hand down the length of his face. There was something eerily familiar about it. He knew that he had seen it before but, for the life of him, he could not remember when or where. It was just one of the many things that was frustrating him about the case.

It had been weeks now and he was still no closer to discovering who had murdered that poor girl in such brutal fashion. Each day that ticked by, the case grew invariably colder and the chances of her killer getting away with his crime increased exponentially. Kyle had his theories about who might be responsible but theories didn't secure convictions. Hard, cold evidence did and, at present, he didn't really have any.

He might have sat there for hours more brooding about it if the sound of the front door slamming didn't divert his attention. A few moments later he spied Jo creeping past the open door of his office. "How was school?" he called out to her when it became obvious she wasn't going to stop and speak.

Jo popped her head into his office with a tense expression. "School was great, Dad."

Kyle glanced at the clock on his desk. "You're late today, aren't you?"

"I was studying with Rico," Jo retorted defensively, "I cleared it with Mom. She said I could."

"And was Danny present for this 'study session' of yours?"

"No, Dad, he was not," Jo replied in a clipped tone, "I can take a lie detector test if you have doubts about that."

"Now don't you go taking that self-righteous attitude with me, Jo Marie," he responded testily, "You've lied to me about that boy at every turn even after I made it absolutely clear that you were _not_ to see him. You don't get to be annoyed because you've rightly lost my trust as a result of those lies. Take responsibility for your own choices."

"Fine! I will take responsibility!" Jo snapped. He expected her to flounce away, as had become her mode of operations in recent weeks but, instead, she came to stand more fully in his office. Clearly, her desire to give him a piece of her mind was greater than her need to maintain the silent treatment. "I don't understand why you have to be so hard on Danny all the time, Dad! He's trying to put his life back together and you've done nothing but accuse him since he came back here! Don't you think you're being unfair?"

"No, I don't think I'm being unfair," Kyle replied smoothly, "Danny just spent the last five years of his life _in prison_ , Jo. That kind of experience changes a person. You don't know who he is or what he's capable of, sweetheart."

"Stop talking about him like he's some common felon!" she cried, "You know him! You _know_ Danny! He practically grew up in this house! How can you treat him like a stranger now?"

"He _is_ a stranger, Jo! The boy I thought I knew would not have been capable of strangling his aunt while she slept! I don't know who the hell that person is!"

"She used to hit him!" Jo blurted out fiercely, "Did you know that? Do you even care?"

For the first time since their entire argument had begun, Kyle Masterson was left totally speechless because it was a charge he hadn't been expecting. He struggled visibly with an appropriate response. He didn't want to accuse Jo of lying because it was abundantly clear she was being sincere but then he also struggled with accepting the allegation at face value. Finally, after considering the most diplomatic approach, he said, "Jo, that is a serious accusation to make against someone, especially when they can't be here to defend themselves. Is that what Danny told you? Is that why he says he killed her?"

"It's what I _saw_ ," Jo uttered thickly, "She used to slap him around and yank his hair...and throw things at him. She once locked him in the closet all night because she said he was evil and she had to 'purge' the devil from him so he wouldn't end up like his father. He was seven years old."

He slumped down in his chair, simultaneously sickened and shocked by what he was hearing. He had known Tara Desai to be a dour and passionless woman but he had never imagined she possessed a streak of cruelty within her, especially towards an innocent child. "Sweetheart..." he breathed softly, "We used to let Tara babysit you kids! I never knew any of this." A horrifying thought suddenly occurred to him. "Did she ever put her hands on you, Jo?"

"No. She never touched me or Lacey. It was always Danny and it was especially bad after she and Mr. Desai would have a fight."

The law enforcement officer in him lamented that he could have missed something so pertinent but the father in him lamented the horror and pain Danny must have suffered while growing up. He looked at his daughter with a grieved expression. "Why didn't either of you ever say anything to me? I could have helped him had I known."

"Danny didn't want us to tell. He was ashamed and he thought it was his fault. He made Lacey and me promise never to say a word, so...we didn't."

"My God..."

"If he knew I was telling you now, he'd be livid."

"Oh, Jo..."

"Now, don't you see how wrong you are about him?" Jo pleaded, "He's not the monster you make him out to be! He was the victim!"

"Unfortunately, while that may be true, everything you just told me only proves my point, honey," Kyle insisted gently, "Danny has been through hell. He was obviously deeply scarred both psychologically and emotionally long _before_ going into juvenile detention. I can't imagine what his mental state must be now. It's not a good idea for you to spend time with him, Jo."

"Danny would never hurt me!"

"He already did...or are you forgetting what happened three years ago?"

Jo paled with the tacit reminder of that terrible day. "Oh my god, you're never going to let me forget that day, are you?" she hissed, "That didn't happen because of Danny. I was sick and my judgment was impaired. I made a bad decision. You can't blame Danny for what happened!"

"I can _absolutely_ blame him for that. Maybe he didn't force you to take those pills but, he left you so traumatized that you reached a point where you felt that was your only option!" Kyle retorted, "Your Mom and I watched you struggle to get past what happened with him for years but that day...that day when I found you..."

Jo averted her face and clenched her hands into fists, blinking back the stinging tears that flooded her eyes. "...Dad, stop it! I don't want to hear about what happened that day!"

"No, Jo Marie. You _need_ to hear this," he pressed on doggedly, "When a man finds his baby girl blue and lifeless on her bedroom floor after she's taken a fistful of benzodiazepines, it changes him profoundly. You wanted to die. You would _be_ dead if I hadn't come home when I did.

"I will never forget that day and I will do everything in my power to make sure you never go back to that dark place again," he vowed, "I'll do whatever I have to do to protect you, sweetheart, even if that means making you hate me. Anything is better than the alternative. I don't think I could live through something like that again. It would kill me."

It was impossible to maintain her anger in the wake of such a powerful and heartfelt speech. Moved, not only by his obvious love for her, but her own need to mend the rift between them, Jo quickly crossed the space between them with a teary cry and threw her arms around his neck in a tight hug. "I don't hate you, Dad," she whispered into his shoulder, "You drive me crazy and I think you're far too single-minded but...I could never, ever hate you."

Kyle gripped her hard and pressed a sound kiss to her temple. "I'm glad to hear that. You're my baby, Jo. I just want what's best for you."

She sniffled and gradually extricated herself from his embrace. "If that's really true, Dad, then you'll give Danny a chance. That's all I'm asking. Just a chance. Quit holding his past against him. Please?"

He expelled a shuddering sigh of concession. "Maybe..."

Jo opened her mouth to coax him into offering something better than a reluctant "maybe" but became distracted in her intention to wheedle more from him when she noticed the photo of the necklace on his desk. She grimaced and fingered the picture. "Why are you looking at this?" she asked him, "I hope you're not thinking of getting something like this for Mom. It's too creepy."

Kyle peered at her curiously, intrigued by her strange expression. She couldn't know that the necklace belonged to Regina Crane so her reaction was surprising. "Why is it creepy?"

"Because it kind of reminds me of the necklace Tara Desai used to wear...don't you remember it?" Jo said, unaware that she had just inadvertently provided her father with the lead for which he'd been waiting, "She barely took it off. Seeing Mom wear something like this would be too weird, so don't buy it, okay?"

"Oh...okay," Kyle stammered as she stooped to give him another quick hug.

"Well, since I ate at the diner and Mom's going to be late with her pottery class, I'm going to finish up my homework and then head to bed. Don't stay up too long, Dad."

"Don't worry, sweetheart," the chief murmured thoughtfully, his full attention already focused to the photograph of Regina Crane's necklace, "I won't."


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

"I wanna live to see my seventeenth birthday! Please, please, if anybody is listening, I _really_ wanna live to see my seventeenth birthday!"

Danny supposed Rico's prayerful mantra was better than him yelling out, "Oh God, oh God, we're gonna die!" every few minutes as he had the first official day he began giving Danny driving lessons but, as far as Danny was concerned, it didn't feel like much of an improvement. Rico's constant jumpiness did little to soothe his own frazzled nerves when it came to being behind the wheel of his mother's very pristine, very expensive and very much borrowed with extremely conditional permission BMW. The vehicle had really been the only choice available to him since neither he nor Rico felt entirely comfortable with him taking his lessons in the Velazquez's _Dodge Grand Caravan_ , for numerous reasons that mostly had to do with no self-respecting teenage boy wanting to be caught driving a minivan.

His mother hadn't been thrilled with the idea of him using her car for driving lessons but, Rico's reputation as a responsible young man helped to sway her. Fortunately, it was the alternate car so Danny wasn't inconveniencing her by borrowing it. Still, he was also extremely cognizant of the fact that, despite its limited usage, the BMW was an expensive learner car. Danny had few doubts that any newly acquired dings and dents to its polished exterior would be immediately spotted by Karen and then his hopes of becoming a licensed driver would most certainly be lost. There was no way Danny was going to be careless with it. If he so much as got a knick in that car, he was pretty sure he'd be grounded for eternity. Danny didn't stop to meditate on exactly when he had developed a fear of disappointing his mother but recently, that had definitely become a concern for him.

"Oh my god, watch your speed! There's a stop sign right there!" Rico cried out as they reached a four-way intersection. Although he had previously been obeying the speed limit, Danny dutifully slowed the vehicle even more, obeyed the traffic sign and then proceeded through the intersection. Despite all of that, Rico continued to fume. "You're going to get us killed. I know it."

"What?" Danny retorted, throwing him an exasperated look, "What did I do wrong that time, Rico? I stopped! What more do you want?"

"No, you didn't stop," Rico refuted tightly, "You _paused_. A stop requires that you bring the vehicle to a complete standstill, wait three to five seconds and _then_ proceed cautiously through the intersection. Have you absorbed nothing I've taught you?"

Danny repressed his groan of longsuffering. He had been receiving driving lessons from Rico for nearly a week and already Rico was driving him crazy. It wasn't that he was ungrateful. He greatly appreciated the sacrifice of time and effort Rico was expending on his part. _However_...Rico Velazquez was probably the biggest control freak that he had ever known in his life! It wasn't enough that Danny learned to do a particular task. He had to learn to do it the Rico way.

They had started off in empty mall parking lots and then had gradually progressed to driving on the street during the early morning hours. Danny was a fast learner, having been an avid fan of go karts in his younger days. Driving a car wasn't such an extreme difference. He felt as ease behind the wheel for the most part...at least when Rico wasn't ranting at him which was an altogether too rare occasion. Still, even with all the yelling, it hadn't been a bad week at all, especially when Danny thought about the fact that he could now refer to Lacey Porter as his girlfriend.

That happy consideration as well as his plans to meet with her later that afternoon was enough to quell his lingering irritation with Rico and make him smile. Since that day at the fort, he and Lacey hadn't passed up a single opportunity to spend time together. They were constantly sneaking off to steal kisses and groping caresses whenever they could catch a private moment. Of course, the circumstances with Lacey weren't completely ideal. Besides his mother, Jo and Rico, no one even knew he and Lacey were dating. They were still forced to keep their relationship secret and limit their contact at school. He couldn't kiss her out in the open and her mother still hated his guts. But, even with those challenges, the last six days with her had been nothing short of bliss.

"You're zoning again," Rico said, abruptly snapping Danny from his smiling reverie, "Keep your attention focused on the road, Desai!"

"Geez! Have you always been this militant?"

"I'm trying to keep you from becoming a menace on the street." Rico expelled a weary sigh. "Do you want to become a statistic?"

Danny appraised him with a bewildered grimace. "What are you talking about?"

"Male teens have some of the highest accident rates among the driving population," Rico recited briskly, "Did you know that?"

"Is there a reason I should? How is that knowledge supposed to help me?"

"Fear can be a powerful motivator." Danny didn't think it was nearly that dire and said so. Rico threw up his hands in exasperation. "You're hopeless. I can see I have my work cut out for me."

"You know, you're not really an expert yourself," Danny reminded him, "You've barely had your driver's license two weeks!"

Rico drew himself up in righteous affront. "Excuse me? What did you say? Did I not tell you what my driving instructor said to me when I went to take my test?"

Danny groaned. "Oh, here we go..."

"She said that never had she seen a more responsible young man behind the wheel, that I displayed a prudent and attentive demeanor that was atypical for someone my age and gender _and_..."

"...and that when you got older you could probably qualify for teaching the class yourself," Danny concluded dryly, "I know this already, Rico. You've only told me this story like eight dozen times."

Rico shot him a brooding glance. "That's a gross exaggeration. I seriously doubt it's been eight dozen."

Danny couldn't help but chuckle at his pouting expression. "Dude, relax. I don't want to get into an accident anymore than you want me to. I'd like to be able to take Lacey on a proper date and pick _her_ up for a change. Trust me. I'm highly motivated here." Rico maintained his skeptical expression but Danny suspected that Rico sympathized all too well with his plight.

The two of them had formed a strange, bickering friendship in the past few weeks that had a solid foundation in mutual respect. While Rico didn't hesitate to dispense to Danny the hard-hitting truths that Jo and Lacey sometimes had a tendency to soften for him, Danny was gradually coaxing Rico out of his bookworm shell and teaching him how to become more comfortable in his own skin. Rico generally remained a bit strange and quirky because, quite honestly, that was Rico in his truest form but, Danny was coming to learn that he could also be quite witty and funny too when he wasn't so tongue-tied.

Recently, Lacey had finally had the opportunity to officially meet Rico when Danny, she and Jo had gone out to the fort to examine the contents of Regina's box more thoroughly. That place had become their unofficial headquarters for investigation and had gradually become stocked with sleeping bags, flashlights and nonperishable food items due to the amount of time they spent out there going over Regina's belongings. Given that fact, it was only a matter of time before their separate friendships with each other converged into a mutual group thing.

Technically, however, Lacey and Rico hadn't really required an introduction. They had spoken to each other on several occasions and had even served together on handful of school committees in the past. But they had never engaged in an actual, formal conversation until Jo officially introduced them to each other. Not surprisingly, he and Lacey actually got along very well.

It had been surprisingly easy to accept Rico into their inner fold. In some ways, it felt as if he had always been a part of their group. It was difficult to pinpoint the exact moment their ragtag trio had become a rather unique quartet but there was no denying that Rico's inclusion was a needed and welcome one. He had also weighed in with his opinion about the lockbox and his thoughts were generally in line with Danny, Lacey and Jo's. If Regina Crane had been harboring any secrets then the likelihood was that they were being kept in that box. By mutual agreement then, they turned their attention towards ferreting out the combination.

Jo thought they should go the easier route and simply procure a lock cutter. The suggestion was easier made than accomplished, however. None of them were acquainted with anyone who might have a pair lying around. Buying the tool at a hardware store might arouse suspicion because Green Grove was such a small community that a person couldn't fart without the whole town knowing about it. There was the certainty that they could find a pair among the school janitor's supplies but Rico was adamantly opposed to getting involved in petty theft, even with Danny's adamant promise to return the tool was they were finished with it. That had, inevitably, brought them back to square one...a continued search for the combination sequence among the clutter of Regina Crane's belongings.

"Turn here," Rico instructed, breaking into Danny's wandering thoughts yet again, "I want you to drive down this street and stop in front of the soccer field. We're going to practice your parallel parking."

Danny did as he instructed, smoothly pulling the car directly in front of the soccer field. It took him a few maneuvers but he managed to parallel park without incident. Rico didn't yell at him a single time. Feeling pretty proud of himself, Danny shifted the car into park and took a moment to watch the soccer team dart across the field in practice drills. Despite having a holiday from school and the brisk, cool morning air, the players were out in full force, using their free day from academics to prepare for the game they had the following day. Danny watched them bat the ball back and forth with keen interest, unaware of the wistful expression that had settled across his face.

Noting the shift in his demeanor, Rico asked, "Are you going to their game tomorrow?"

"Not likely," Danny snorted, "Archie Yates hates my guts, remember?"

"That might have something to do with you stealing his girl," Rico pointed out dryly, "Just saying."

"That's not what happened," Danny muttered in a defensive tone, only to add sheepishly when Rico flashed him a skeptical look, "Well, not entirely anyway."

"Okay, so if you're not going to the game, what's with the face?" Rico wondered, "Do you play or something?"

"I was on a junior team from the time I was five years old," he said, "Nothing too official. And I played with my dad. It was our thing. He was actually a really, big deal back in the day."

"Was he?"

"Oh yeah, he got a full ride to college and everything," Danny recounted, unaware of the latent admiration that colored his words, "He even played in a few national championships. I think he might have gone pro eventually but...he met my mom. They fell in love and got married and then they had me. The rest is history."

"You sound proud of him," Rico observed.

"I guess so," he mumbled, "We were pretty close when I was younger."

"But not so much when you got older?"

"Well, I _did_ go to prison for murdering his little sister so there was that..." Danny replied grimly. He half hoped that reminder would be enough to stifle Rico's growing fascination with his past. It didn't.

"Jo said that your father was really supportive of you after everything happened. It doesn't seem like he held it against you."

"Yeah, he was a real saint."

"Do...do you really mean that or are you being sarcastic right now?" Rico wondered, "I can never tell."

"Is there any particular reason you're suddenly so full of questions about my father?" Danny asked irritably.

"You're the one who brought him up!"

"Because you asked me a question!"

"And now I'm asking a few more. What's the big deal?"

"I don't like talking about him too much."

"Why not?"

"Because it makes me feel even more mixed up than I already do! He died, Rico! I don't like to think about it."

"Because you miss him?"

"Because of a lot of reasons. He was my dad, okay," Danny replied, as if that were answer enough, "It's complicated."

"I just thought with everything we've learned so far it would have, you know, made you change your opinion about him and maybe that's why you never want to talk about it."

"We haven't really learned much of anything," Danny countered in a gruff tone.

"We know for sure he was into some shady stuff," Rico said, "I just figured you'd be more...I don't know...disillusioned about everything."

"Who says I'm not disillusioned?"

"Well, you've never really talked about him before," Rico went on, "This is like the first time you've referenced him using more than three sentences and you were almost bordering on happy for a second there. It took me by surprise."

"So what? You think I should hate him because he did bad things?"

"Not at all," Rico was quick to reassure him, "I'm saying that it's pretty obvious that you still love and admire him and that, maybe, it would help you process everything that has happened a little better if you talked about him more."

Danny slumped low in his seat, a clear indication that he was approaching complete emotional shutdown. "I don't need to talk more. It's pretty simple. The few happy childhood memories I have that _don't_ involve Lacey and Jo are usually about him. Most of them revolved around soccer and watching those guys play just reminded me of him. Playing the game was when I felt closest to him."

"That's good. Maybe you should try to access those feelings more often," Rico advised, "I think it would probably help you to be less grumpy."

"I'm not grumpy."

"It's okay. Most grumpy people don't know that they're grumpy. The point is," Rico pressed on, "I feel like you're finally making an emotional breakthrough here. You're letting the healing process begin. It's a good thing."

Danny rolled his eyes with a wry smile. "Thank you, Dr. Velazquez. What's next? You gonna encourage me to join the soccer team in order to achieve some true catharsis?"

"Oh yeah," he snorted sardonically, "That was totally going to be my next order of business." However, his laughter died when he glimpsed the sudden, introspective gleam in Danny's eyes. Rico's mouth fell open with an incredulous squeak. "Oh no, I was only kidding!" he flared out, "That was a complete joke! You can't join the soccer team, Danny!"

"Why not?"

"Because you're _you_ ," Rico burst out bluntly.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Rico pointed towards the soccer field where the team continued to run drills. "Do you see those guys over there?"

"Yeah..." Danny retorted impatiently, "What's your point?"

" _They_ are at the top of the high school food chain," Rico stated, " _They_ are the popular ones. The good-looking ones. They get all the glamour and all the girls. We..." he went on, gesturing between himself and Danny, "...are not of their kind. We are the nerds. The geeks. The weirdoes. The freaks. Our sort do not become jocks. We may be destined to become astrophysicists or molecular biologists or even podiatrists but we do not belong out there. Out there, we will most certainly be stripped of all dignity."

In the wake of that rambling, though purely impassioned speech, Danny blinked at Rico and said mildly, "Maybe it's time to change all of that."

"Are you crazy? Did you not hear a word I just said to you?"

"Do you think they're having tryouts?"

"You will _never_ make the team!"

"I think I heard they were looking for a couple of positions."

"Archie Yates will make your life a living hell."

"I'm pretty good. I think I'd be an asset to the team."

"Am I in bizarro world? Are the words just not penetrating?"

"I think I'm going to do it."

"It's like I'm talking to a brick wall."

"Rico, don't you ever get sick of doing what's expected of you?"

"Not really. I'm a big fan of routine and order. I prefer my life quiet and predictable. I'm funny like that."

"Well, I've never been very quiet or predictable."

"Really?" Rico deadpanned, "I couldn't tell."

"Yeah. I'm going to do it," Danny said, reaching over to unsnap his seatbelt, "Wish me luck."

Rico watched him duck from the car and dart across the street towards the soccer field with lamenting shake of his head. "Even baby Jesus can't save you now."

As Rico Velazquez sat alone in Karen Desai's borrowed car moodily contemplating what he believed to be a grave error in his newfound friend's judgment, Karen Desai diligently tidied up her home while happily contemplating her recalcitrant son's recent social strides and their own improving relationship. The changes in Danny hadn't been anything too drastic. He was suddenly willing to help her out in the kitchen. He ate dinner with her every night now. He even discussed his school day with her. And he smiled more, that endearing, lopsided smile that had been his trademark as a little boy.

He was still a work in progress, however. Danny maintained his tendency to be withdrawn and secretive. His refusal to talk about Tara or the events surrounding her death had not weakened. He was equally reticent to talk about his father. But, beyond those two taboo topics, Danny had become more willing to engage her in conversation than he had been in the past. Communication between them was no longer as tense and stilted and his angry outbursts against her had decreased considerably.

She still firmly believed he could benefit from therapy sessions, not only to process what had happened to five years ago but also to deal with his father's death and his matriculation into high school. Karen had learned from several conversations with Danny's principal that his transition was not going smoothly at all. He suffered from daily bullying and multiple threats from students and parents alike. The knowledge filled her with guilt because she had been the one to insist on his attending a "normal school" in the first place. He never mentioned the hardships he suffered, however. Karen could only be grateful he didn't have to endure the torment alone. He, at least, had an emotional outlet.

Jo and Lacey had proven themselves to be ardent supporters of her son even in spite of their parental opposition. The girls found a way to come visit him nearly every other day and Karen knew that their friendship was a lifeline for Danny. And now there was a new kid, Rico Velazquez, that he was beginning to spend time with as well. It seemed that, in spite of all the opposition, Danny was finally beginning to find his place in the world. And, the more secure he became in the idea he could have an actual future, the less guarded he became with Karen.

Four days earlier Karen realized they had reached a turning point when Danny had come to her with a problem. She'd suspected that he had something important to talk to her about given the anxious pacing he was doing just outside the living room. Every so often he would stop, take a step towards the living room, only to turn on his heel and begin pacing anew.

Her first instinct had been to call him inside to her and coax it out of him. However, Karen had learned from experience that questioning Danny almost always made him clam up tightly. The more she pushed him to talk, the more uncommunicative he became. If she wanted to know what was bothering him then she would have to wait for him to come to her. Danny had to be ready to tell things in his own time and in his own way. After approximately five more minutes of pacing, he finally crept forward to do just that.

He cautiously stuck his head into the living room and regarded her with an uncertain expression. "Hey."

She offered him a welcome smile and set aside the catalog she had been perusing. "Hey. What's going on, sweetheart?"

"Can we talk a minute?"

"Sure." She patted the empty space beside her on the sofa. "Come over here and sit."

It was clear to her at the time that he was still warring within himself about confiding in her but he'd accepted her invitation nonetheless and dropped down beside her. Once again, Karen had to bite her tongue to keep from bombarding him with questions. Though it took an amazing feat of will, she managed to sit and wait patiently for him to begin. He wrung his hands and jostled his knee and seemed to have tremendous difficulty meeting her eyes. And although it felt like an eternity of fidgeting, Karen remained patient, waiting for Danny to speak again.

"So...um...you...uh...you told me before that I could...um...talk to you...about...um...about some things," he began haltingly.

"Yes..."

He started fidgeting anew and darting gaze as well as the panic swirling in the dark depths of his eyes did not escape Karen's notice either. "About...um...about...you know..." He cleared his throat several times before mumbling in an almost inaudible grunt, "...about sex."

Karen blinked at him rapidly, hoping devoutly that she was covering her shock well. "You want to talk to me about sex?"

Danny abruptly surged to his feet, as if the very act of voicing his problem aloud completely broke all his resolve. "You know what? Just forget it! I don't know what I was thinking by coming to you! This is so stupid! I'm such an idiot!"

He rambled on defensively, cursing himself for making a mistake but Karen was able to look past his self-deprecation and what seemed to be his rejection of her to note the fact he hadn't left. Despite all his ranting and avowals of deep regret, he remained in place. She took that as an encouraging sign and asked him very gently, "What do you want to know?"

Presently, Karen hoisted the vacuum cleaner upstairs to continue her cleaning and thought about how she had felt immediately after posing that question. At the time, she had been cringing internally. After all, this was her child, her baby. No mother wanted to contemplate their child having sex, let alone be the one to give them advice about the matter. But, Karen recognized that Danny had reached the age where he was curious and, if that kiss she had witnessed between him and Lacey was any indication, he wasn't very far off from experimenting, if he hadn't started already. He was going to learn about sex one way or another. She simply needed to decide if she wanted it to be in a responsible manner or by trial and error.

After her softly spoken query, however, they had inevitably gone back to square one with Danny fidgeting and pacing and Karen waiting patiently for him to begin once more. She had known that he was working up the courage to tell her something profound so she did herself to be mentally prepared for whatever that was. After taking several, deep breaths Danny, at last, lurched around to face her and blurted out, "I don't really know much about having sex...and by that I mean specifically about how to make _her_ feel good."

"Oh. Are...are you and Lacey...?"

"No," he answered quickly, "Not yet. But she wants to and I want that too. I'd just like to know what I'm doing when the time comes, you know?"

"Okay."

"And I don't think porn is the best indicator of what women want. Am I wrong?"

By that point, her face had grown incredibly hot. Karen didn't doubt she was the color of a ripe tomato but she somehow kept her composure despite her discomfiture. "No. I think that's a fair assumption."

"I already know the logistics. I've heard all kinds of stories," he went on, "The guys in juvie were always bragging about all the girls they'd been with before. I didn't really have much to contribute so I'd just hang back and listen. So, I know that there are different things I can do to please a woman in bed but...how will I know if those things will be something that _Lacey_ likes? I guess what I'm asking is how will I know what turns her on and what doesn't?" he finished in a rush of breath.

In a feat of Herculean strength, Karen somehow had refrained screaming and exiting the room in a dead sprint. Still, she'd found herself cursing Vikram in her heart for not being there. _He_ should have been the one answering those questions for Danny. He should have been the one preparing their teenage son for manhood. Karen's self pity had only lasted a fraction of a second, however. Vikram wasn't there and Danny needed guidance. He was practically begging for it and this was her chance to put all the promises she had made to him into action.

Karen then squared her shoulders with determination and addressed Danny's concerns as matter-of-factly as she could. "You can always ask her what she likes," she advised him, "Communication doesn't have to stop just because you're naked, Danny." Karen had been surprised by how serenely she'd made the statement when the entire time her belly was churning with nausea. Strangely, it seemed the more discomfited Danny became, the calmer and more controlled she felt.

"So I should just ask her? And she's not going to think I'm totally clueless?"

"I would imagine that she'd feel like you were being attentive to her needs instead."

Danny dipped his head to contemplate his shoes following her reply, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. "Oh...okay. What else?"

"Talking isn't the only thing. You need to listen to her body too. How does she respond when you touch her? Does she try to get closer to you or does she grimace and scoot away? Watch her facial expressions, listen to the sounds she makes. Is what you're doing causing her pain or is it pleasure? How does she touch you? Where does she like to touch? Learn her tells. All women have them. And if you're still unsure after that, ask her to _show_ you what she wants. Mutual masturbation can actually be an enjoyable part of foreplay."

With each statement she made, Danny shrank back into himself with a mortified whimper. "Oh my god, _Mom_! Do you have to be so _detailed_ about everything? Geez!"

"Danny, if you're considering having sex then you should be able to talk about it," she told him mildly.

He tunneled his hand through his hair. "I _can_ talk about it!" he argued, "It's talking about it with _you_ that feels weird."

"I suppose this would be an easier conversation to have with your father."

"Yeah...it would."

"I'm sorry you don't have that, sweetheart. I wish it could be different."

"It's okay," he mumbled as he turned to leave, "You helped. Thanks."

As Karen glided the vacuum cleaner back and forth in the upstairs hallway, she smiled to herself when she recalled how hastily he had scooted from the living room after that. The conversation had been awkward and frankly rather unpleasant but those last five words he had uttered had made it entirely worth it for her. He hadn't expressed any remorse for his father's lack of presence. No, instead, he had tacitly implied that _she_ had been enough. He had asked for her help and she had not disappointed him. True, he hadn't dared to broach the subject with her again since then but, for Karen, it was enough.

Still, it was all very scary to contemplate. She wasn't ready for him to take such a serious step even if he thought _he_ was. In her mind, Danny was still the eleven year old boy he'd been when he was sent away. She had been robbed of those five years. Truly, she had missed whole chunks of his childhood. She was so determined to gain back that lost time that her heart couldn't quite accept what was plain to her eyes. Danny wasn't a little boy anymore and he hadn't been for some time.

What really unnerved Karen, though, was how similar he was in temperament to his father. From what little she had seen, Danny was as intense and passionate about Lacey Porter as Vikram had once been about her. That kind of fervency could be a good thing...or a very bad thing. She could well remember that when Vikram had loved her, he had loved her to the depths of his soul but, when he started to hate her...he had made her life a living hell. The memory of his emotional and verbal abuse still haunted her.

It wasn't necessarily that Karen feared Danny would go down a similar path with Lacey. Rather, she worried about the possible damage he could do to his already delicate mental state if the relationship with Lacey didn't work out as he hoped. Karen would have much preferred Danny table all romantic entanglements and concentrate instead on restoring his emotional and mental health. But she knew that there would be no reasoning with him on that score. He was falling in love and nothing else in his life would take precedence over that.

Resigned and a little saddened by the thought, Karen found herself drawn into Danny's room, compelled by nostalgia for the boy he had been. She didn't enter his space too often because he was often touchy about her being in his room. However, her desire to feel close to him caused her to linger. And when she noticed the clothing that littered his bedroom floor as well as the disheveled state in which he'd left his bed, Karen decided to tidy his room, thereby creating for herself the perfect excuse to stay.

Making a mental note to take him to task for not cleaning his room before leaving with his friend, Karen made her way through his room, collecting together all his dirty clothing and stuffing them into his hamper. She truly meant to leave it at that but her reluctance to leave his space inevitably led to her straightening the items on his desk and putting away his books as well. She tried not to blush when she came across the open box of condoms in his nightstand drawer and firmly resisted the urge to count them. Lastly, she made the impulsive decision to strip his bed sheets rather than simply make the bed just in case there was a valid reason for washing his linens.

As she tugged the fitted sheet free, she was taken off guard when something popped loose from beneath the mattress and bounced across the carpet. She caught a glimpse of its glinting descent in her peripheral vision. Her brow creased in a curious frown, Karen stooped to retrieve the item. Her first thought was that Danny had hidden away a secret trinket for Lacey but, as she got closer, Karen was surprised to discover the charm was something very familiar _to her_ instead. She hadn't seen the necklace in years, had honestly believed it had been buried with Tara five years ago. But here it was, the ruby pendant that had been in Vikram's family for three generations, back in her home as if it had never disappeared at all.

Karen turned the necklace over in her hands, her frown deepening as she speculated on how her son had come to be in possession of it and why he had been hiding it beneath his mattress. She remembered how, only weeks prior, he had destroyed all remaining photos of Tara while in a rage. It seemed strange to her that he would choose to keep her necklace after all of that. Unfortunately, Karen's intention to call Danny and question him about it was thwarted by the doorbell. Exasperated and a little unnerved by her find, she dropped the necklace into Danny's nightstand drawer and rushed downstairs to answer the door.

Her welcoming smile collapsed when she pulled it open, however, and found Kyle Masterson standing on her porch. Karen expelled a tired sigh. She wasn't ignorant to the fact that Kyle Masterson had been harassing her son for weeks now and she imagined he was back for more of the same. Karen leaned into the doorframe and fixed him with a narrowed glare.

"What the hell do you want now, Kyle?"

He tried to disarm her with a jovial smile. "Hello to you too, Karen. You're looking as beautiful as ever."

"Cut the crap. I'm tired and I'm not in the mood. What do you want?" she reiterated flatly.

He tried to peer over her shoulder into the house. "Is Danny around? I need to have a word."

Karen deliberately stepped into his line of sight. "He's out with friends right now. I'll let him know you stopped by." When she started to shut the door in his face, Kyle shot out his hand to waylay her attempt. His smile remained in place but it was hardened with a determined edge.

"Then maybe you can help me," Chief Masterson suggested.

"That's highly doubtful."

"Hear me out," he insisted, reaching inside the lapel of his jacket to pull free a photo. He passed it to an impatient Karen. "Have you ever seen that necklace before?"

Karen glanced down at the photo, her frosty demeanor slipping slightly as she studied the full color still of Tara Desai's necklace. She had no idea why Kyle Masterson would be asking about it but she fully suspected it was for no good reason. She passed the photo back to him with a terse shake of her head.

"No," she lied smoothly, "I've never seen it. Why are you asking?"

"It's strange that you should say that," Masterson began in a speculative tone, "because I was going through some old photographs at home and I found several pictures of your sister-in-law wearing this exact same necklace."

"And your point is?" Karen sighed impatiently.

"This is also the same necklace Regina Crane was wearing the night she died," Kyle told her, "But it wasn't found on her body. Her mother reported it stolen."

The color slowly drained from Karen's face. She felt her heart begin to pound at an accelerated rate. For an instant, she actually felt faint, unable to banish the implications of what Kyle Masterson had just told her. She thought about finding the necklace and why Danny would have hidden it at all. Surely he wouldn't have done something like that if he didn't have anything to hide.

Noting how profoundly his revelations had affected her, Kyle decided to take advantage of her obvious vulnerability. "I only want to help him, Karen," he cajoled, "I know that Danny's had a tough road of it. Let me come inside for a few minutes and have a look around. Whatever we find, we'll figure out a way to make it right for him."

Despite the uncontrollable trembling that had overtaken her body, Karen stepped into his path with a belligerent scowl. "I don't think so. You're not stepping foot inside my house without a warrant."

"Do you really want it to come to that, Karen? I don't want this to get ugly."

"Get off my property, Kyle...and don't come back until you have a legal right to do so."

Her angry bravado lasted as long as it took her to slam the door in his face. Only then did she slump back against it and release the sobs burning in her chest.


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**A/N: Okay, so I thought I would issue a warning here. I'm pretty sure that this part is crossing over the realm of T. It does contain some sexual content so if that's not your thing, vacate now. I really tried to keep this T but...well...it's Dacey. This will likely be the worst of it though...I think.**

* * *

 **Chapter Seventeen**

"Hey, Lace."

Lacey glanced up from Regina's journal just in time to see Danny duck through her open, bedroom window with an endearingly crooked smile. Smiling in return, she set aside the diary and bounced from the bed to greet him with a soft, lingering kiss. "Hey," she sighed against his mouth, "I missed you today. How did your driving lesson go?" Danny made a face that could aptly be described as woeful amusement. Lacey swallowed a giggle. "Rico still being uptight?"

"What can I say? It's Rico."

"Well, according to him," Lacey recounted with a teasing gleam in her eyes, " _you_ were the one being difficult today. He sent Jo like six different texts while we were at the movies earlier."

"Freaking Rico..." he muttered, "Speaking of Jo, how was your 'girl time' today?"

"I know you aren't seriously pouting right now."

"I'm not," he protested and then promptly ruined the denial by further pouting, "Why would I be jealous that you spent your afternoon shopping and giggling and I spent mine getting yelled at for failing to use my turn signal?"

"Hey, you don't get to complain," she chastised him playfully, "I offered you my help but you chose otherwise."

"It's a good thing you're not the type of girlfriend who says, 'I told you so,'" he groused with an amiable smile in between playful kisses, "Otherwise, this could be really uncomfortable for me." Lacey chuckled in response. He started to pull her close with the intention of kissing her deeper when a more pressing consideration suddenly occurred to him. "Hey, where's your mom right now?" he asked in a loud stage whisper, "Is she downstairs?"

She smiled at his obvious paranoia. "She went to a luncheon. She won't be back for hours so you'd better make this time count."

He resisted her efforts to bring his mouth to hers. "Wait. What about Clara? Is she here right now?"

"Yeah, she is here but, she has friends over. She won't come up here to bug me for at least an hour," Lacey reassured him, "Don't worry. She knows all about us. She won't say anything."

"Seriously?"

"We're as alone as we're gonna get, Desai. You either want this or you don't."

Danny grinned at her. "Lacey Porter, are you implying that you want to have your way with me?"

She pecked his lips affectionately and then tugged the band securing his hair free so that the disheveled waves fell over his shoulders. "I'm not implying. I'm stating it outright." They nuzzled at one another for a few moments but as soon as Danny tried to escalate matters in the direction she wanted, Lacey asked in a distracted mumble, "So what's this I hear about you joining the soccer team?"

"I knew it!" Danny sighed against her neck. He lifted his head with an ironic laugh. "I _knew_ Rico was texting Jo about it when I dropped him off at home."

Lacey's eyes flared wide with mild horror. "Wait. So, it's true? You really _did_ join the soccer team?"

He shrugged. "Turns out there were a few open positions on the team. I asked about trying out and Coach Kenner let me run a few drills. I got my own jersey and everything but, I left it in the car."

"Oh my god," Lacey uttered incredulously, shrugging out of his loosened embrace, "You're being completely serious right now."

"And why am I suddenly picking up on the fact that doesn't make you happy?" Danny concluded with a befuddled frown.

Lacey plunked her hands on her hips in a defensive posture. "Should I be _happy_ that you're on the same team with my ex-boyfriend?"

"So what?"

"Danny, Archie is he captain of the soccer team!"

She made the statement as if that knowledge alone should have been enough to direct his actions. The very fact she even had the expectation that it would pissed him off. He felt the first sparks of irritation with her flare. "Again, _so what_? It has nothing to do with him."

"It has _everything_ to do with him!" she retorted, "Do you have any idea how awkward this is going to be? We agreed when we started this whole thing that we would keep what's between us under wraps for now. I really hurt Archie when I broke up with him. I'm not going to rub my relationship with you in his face!"

"And is that what you think I'm trying to do?" Danny burst out in growing offense.

"You tell me!"

"Are you freaking kidding me right now?" Her expression clearly demanded an explanation in spite of his rising indignation with her. "Geez, Lacey! I was trying to feel close to my dad, alright!" That angry, unexpected admission managed to instantly fizzle out Lacey's indignant bluster but Danny remained on edge. "I know it sounds stupid but it's really exhausting resenting him all of the time. He's dead, Lacey! It's not like I can do anything about the way I feel! I've got no way to channel that rage."

"Danny, I'm sorry," Lacey murmured contritely, "I didn't know." She reached out to stroke his forearm in apology but he evaded her touch.

"Do you really believe I'm the type of person who would use what we have together just to stick it to Archie?" he asked her in a betrayed tone, "Is that what you think of me, Lacey?"

"No, of course I don't!"

"Like hell you don't!"

"God, Danny, give me a break," she cried, "Your motives are hard enough to figure out on a good day! I had no idea you had all these feelings about your dad because _you've never told me_! The only way I can get to know you better is if you let me in!"

Disarmed of his anger with the inarguable veracity of her words, Danny dropped down onto the cushion covered chest just beneath her window. "My father stopped coming to see me in juvie a couple of months before my fourteenth birthday," he confessed in a suffocated voice, "He never explained why, never gave me any indication of what changed for him. I had my suspicions about why but...in the end, it didn't matter. He just stopped coming. Like he suddenly stopped loving me."

Lacey knelt down before him and gathered his hands between her own before leaning forward to kiss away the tears that began to fall on his cheeks. "I'm sorry that happened to you, Danny."

"I loved him so much and all I wanted was for him to be proud of me," he whispered, "Everything I've done these last five years has been for him...because I loved him but, none of that mattered because he still walked away."

"That's not your fault, Danny."

"I don't like to talk about him because it hurts and it makes me feel ashamed. But also because it makes me wonder if what Aunt Tara always said about me was true...that maybe there is something wrong with me and I _am_ unlovable."

"There is nothing wrong with you," Lacey whispered fervidly. She brushed his hair back from his face and swept a gentle kiss across his trembling mouth. "And you're not. You're not unlovable at all."

It took him a few moments before he began to respond to her nibbling kisses. Lacey scooted closer to him, tucking her body between his open knees as he timorously parted his lips for her kiss, touched his tongue to hers. She dragged her mouth down the stubble roughened expanse of his chin, nipping her way towards the delicate pulse that beat at the base of his throat. She felt his hand come to rest against the back of her head, his moan of pleasure rumbling in his chest as she dipped her tongue to taste him there again and again.

And then he was winding his fingers in her hair and sealing his mouth to hers once more, kissing her with avaricious need. The two of them stumbled to their feet and made a blind trek towards her bed. Lacey pushed his jacket from his shoulders, allowing it to fall unheeded to the floor. It was soon joined by his shoes and her t-shirt. When she stood before him in nothing but her bra, a pair of shorts and bare feet, Lacey took hold of his hands and brought them around to the fastener at her back in unmistakable invitation. Their eyes collided in a penetrating stare.

When Lacey became aware that Danny's fingers were shaking too much to unsnap the clasp on his own, she kissed away his uncertainty and then tenderly assisted him. Seconds later, she slipped satin scrap of material from her shoulders and let it fall at their feet. Danny hungrily drank in the sight of her naked skin. He pulled her into his arms, his lips finding the delicate shell of her ear in a tantalizing nuzzle, his fingers skimming over her smooth, bare flesh in timid caresses. As his touch became bolder, they pressed closer, his need for her beginning to throb between them.

Lacey twisted her fingers in the soft, cotton material of his Henley, her eyes falling closed with a pleasured gasp as he began to kiss his way down the column of her throat. "Do you have a condom?" The words tumbled from her lips in a breathless whisper.

Danny pulled back abruptly to regard her with a heavy lidded stare, his dark eyes leaping with desire when he slowly nodded his confirmation. He searched her features for any signs of hesitancy or doubt but all he could see reflected on her beautiful face was desire for him. There wasn't any need to ask her if she was sure. He knew that she was.

"Okay..." Lacey murmured, licking her lips in nervous anticipation, "I'm going to lock the door now."

Danny turned to watch her walk over to the door before inevitably trailing behind her, as if attached to an invisible string. As she clicked the lock into place, he swept aside her hair and pressed tender kisses to the sensitive nape of her neck. She moaned softly as his lips found purchase against her bare shoulder and his hands swept around to cup her heaving breasts. Their mouths met in a frenzied kiss as she turned in his arms.

Desperate to be skin to skin with him, Lacey peeled away his shirt and tossed it away. As soon as he was free of it, they were back in each other's arms, their bodies twirling in an unconscious dance as they stumbled their way over to Lacey's bed. After sweeping aside the various papers and cards that littered her bedspread, Danny dropped down onto the mattress and pulled Lacey with him.

She straddled his lap and claimed his lips in another open mouthed kiss. They thrust against one another in growing need. Their breaths escaped them in harsh, staccato bursts. Danny slid his hands from her waist to cup her bottom and angled his hips beneath her so that the ridge of his arousal hit her in exactly the spot he knew gave her the most pleasure. Lacey curled her fingernails into his shoulders. She moaned his name again and again in a whimpering litany.

But just as the pressure began to build and he was sure they'd both find fulfillment right then and there, Lacey abruptly broke the kiss and slid from his lap. His dark eyes bounced to her face in frustrated desire. "What's wrong?" he gasped a little desperately, "Are we stopping?" If that was the case, Danny considered, he would try to find a way to accept and respect her decision but at the same time, he might also cry a little.

Thankfully, Lacey had no intention of stopping at all. She offered him a shy smile in answer before deliberately hooking her thumbs into the waistband of her shorts and panties and pushing them down her thighs. Only when she was completely naked did Lacey find the courage to look at him again. Danny regarded her with such unrestrained hunger that the intensity of his gaze actually increased the pounding ache between her legs.

It was the furthest they had ever gone. In the past week, they'd engaged in plenty of heated makeout sessions and even some naked above the waist exploration but never to this degree. When Danny took hold of her hand and began tugging her to him, Lacey knew that there was no going back. Once she gave her body to Danny, then he would have her heart as well. She knew he would have it for life.

She cradled his rumpled head against her as he brushed sweet kisses across each side of her pelvis. He lightly skimmed her hips with his hands, his thumbs stroking at her inner thighs, slipping provocatively through the moisture that had gathered there. Her breath caught in her throat, however, when he nuzzled his nose against the coarse vee of curls at the apex of her thighs, his tongue darting out to touch the sensitive pearl of flesh hidden beneath.

Danny then tipped back his head to regard her, his eyes full of unspoken appeal and a hint of fear. Lacey nodded her consent to his silent request and let him pull her down onto the bed with him. Afterwards, when Lacey had loosened her grip on his hair and he had left her sprawled across the bed, weary and boneless, her knees jellied and trembling from the talents of his nimble and eager tongue, Danny retrieved the swathe of condoms from his back pocket. He tore one from the chain and then hastily removed the remainder of his clothing. When, at last, they were skin to skin, he gathered her beneath him and joined his body to hers.

The pain of his entry was minimal due to the relaxation in her muscles from her recent orgasm. He sank inside her deeply and with very little resistance, his pleasure at being enveloped by her tight warmth manifesting itself in a hissed expletive. His initial thrusts were tentative and slow and allowed Lacey to become accustomed to the sensation of being filled by him. As she relaxed against him, her thighs parting even wider to accommodate his rolling hips, his movements became more fluid.

It was difficult to stifle their keening cries of ecstasy as he steadily rocked inside of her. Lacey bit into his shoulder in an attempt to muffle her whimpers. He panted into the crook of her neck, one hand cradled beneath her hips and the other braced against her wrought iron headboard to mute its rhythmic pounding against her bedroom wall. They shushed one another at giggling intervals, swallowing each other's moans between searching kisses. Eventually, however, they became too lost in one another to bother keeping quiet at all.

His thrusts soon became quick and shallow, losing their smooth, coordinated rhythm. His back and arms became slick with sweat. Lacey knew that he was close to release long before he gasped out his warning against her cheek. Seconds later, she felt him expand and pulse within her. Danny uttered her name in a long, serrated moan, pumping his hips against her lightly as he rode out the final stirring currents of his premature orgasm. When it was over, he collapsed against her and murmured sweet apologies into the moist crook of her throat.

Lacey smiled against his shoulder, lovingly sifting her fingers through the damp strands of his hair. She had honestly never felt closer to him, lying skin to skin and heart to heart with only a thin barrier of latex between them. When he would have rolled away from her to remove and discard the condom, she held him against her tightly because she enjoyed the warmth and weight of his body against hers.

Danny shifted himself a little before dipping his head to brush a tender kiss across her lips. "I'm not too heavy for you, am I?"

She feathered her fingers over his nose and lips, unable to stop touching him. "I don't mind it. I like the way you feel."

He settled back against her with a drowsy laugh. "I like the way you feel too."

"Hmm, I could tell," she teased, "You weren't very quiet at all, especially at the end. I had no idea you knew so many curse words and in so many colorful combinations too." Danny expelled a discomfited grunt at her mischievous teasing. "I'm pretty sure we've scarred my sister and her friends for life."

Danny buried his head in her neck with a mortified groan, his entire face burning. "Gah...I really wanted to have more self control than that," he muttered self-deprecatingly.

"Well, you have some condoms left, don't you?" Lacey reminded him. He reared back a little with the question, surprised to note desire swirling anew in the depths of her eyes. He felt compelled by how soft and suggestive they had become as well as the alluring way she trailed her fingers down the bare expanse of his chest. "So, I guess you've still got another chance to get it right."

Two condoms and four orgasms later, Lacey slumped against Danny's chest in a boneless heap. With a sated groan, she finally gathered the strength to roll onto her back, reveling a little in the achy tenderness that throbbed between her legs. Danny shifted onto his side to face her and dropped a tired kiss to her shoulder. "That was intense."

"Hmmm..." she hummed.

"You weren't so quiet yourself this time."

She shoved his shoulder with an exhausted smile. "Oh, shut up."

The two traded several lazy kisses, their bodies entwined in lethargic contentment. They would have likely fallen asleep together had Danny not been so cognizant of the time. He reluctantly began to extricate himself from her embrace. "I should probably get going."

Lacey pouted at the prospect and tightened her arms. "No. Don't leave yet," she protested sleepily, "Five more minutes."

Danny pecked several kisses to the tip of her nose, his strong reluctance to leave equaling her fervent desire to have him remain. "I could probably stay here with you for five more hours but if I don't get my mom's car back soon she's gonna put out an APB on me."

He started to scoot away from her but ended up encountering the crumpled remains of Regina Crane's journal as he did so. Danny surveyed the leather-bound book with a curious frown before tossing it over onto Lacey's nightstand. He shifted to face her again with a questioning look. "You've been reading that? Since when?"

"Only for the last two days actually," Lacey told him, "Jo and I have been taking turns, hoping to find some clues about what Regina might have been involved in. I haven't really found out very much beyond the fact she apparently had her sexual awakening at thirteen and didn't look back after. Nothing yet about her dad or yours or the combination to that lockbox. I feel like I'm searching for a needle in a haystack."

"Thank you, Lace. I really do appreciate everything you're doing for me," Danny murmured, "I know this isn't the greatest situation right now and I hate that I've put you in the middle of my mess."

Lacey lifted her hand to cup his cheek, leaning into him so that her forehead rested against his. "You didn't put me anywhere," she whispered, "I want to do this. I want to help you."

"Even though I'm nothing but trouble?"

"You are worth every bit of trouble you cause, Danny Desai."

He smiled and started to kiss her for that sweet statement when the full impact of what she had mentioned to him earlier dawned on him. "So, wait a second. You mean to tell me that you've been reading Regina Crane porn all afternoon?" he teased her irreverently, "No wonder you were all over me when I got here."

"Oh whatever, Danny! I was not all over you!"

He angled a suggestive glance down at his naked body. "Could have fooled me. You practically ripped my clothes off!"

That comment earned him a smack in the face with Lacey's pillow. "Oh wow, you're just out of control! Don't you have someplace else to be, Desai?" she grumbled with a good-natured smile, "Get out of here."

He smacked a kiss to her lips before rolling briskly from her bed. Lacey watched through half-mast eyes as he fastened his hair into a haphazard topknot and padded from one corner of her room to the other to gather up his discarded clothing. Without a hint of embarrassment, Lacey admired the lines of his nude form, recalling every taste and touch she'd enjoyed of his smooth, brown skin. A contented smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Danny became aware of that smile as he pulled on his jeans.

"What?" he asked her in laughing chagrin, "Why are you staring at me?"

Lacey settled back against the pillows and stacked her hands behind her head with a superior grin. "I was just thinking. You gave me your virginity today, Desai."

After that boastful observation, Danny couldn't help himself. He crawled back into bed with her for another lingering kiss. "And you gave me yours too, Porter," he whispered into her mouth.

"It wasn't too awkward, was it?"

"Oh no, it was awkward as hell," he countered with a laugh and then his tone lowered to a seductive whisper, "But it was really hot too. It felt so good to be inside you like that, Lace."

She couldn't repress her enamored smile. "Really?"

"Really. I can't wait to do it again," he told her, punctuating his every word with a kiss, "And again. And again. And again."

"Are you sure you have enough stamina for that?" she teased.

He growled at her playfully. "Is that a challenge?"

"Yeah, it is," she whispered, slipping her hand between them in a meandering trek towards his groin, "Are you up for it?"

Their would be kiss was aborted by an abrupt knock to her bedroom door. With mutual curses, Danny and Lacey hastily scrambled apart as Clara's voice drifted over to them. "Lacey, the garage door just went up," she warned, "Mom's home. You might want to tell Danny to get dressed and get out of here ASAP."

In all of her life, Lacey had never seen anyone throw on their clothes as fast as Danny did in those few ensuing seconds. Despite the potential for impending disaster, Lacey couldn't help but giggle over his panicked state. She shrugged into her rumpled tee and managed to waylay him long enough to get a quick kiss from him before he scooted out her window. "I'll call you tonight," she told him.

"I promise to answer if I'm not dead."

After the adrenaline rush from shimmying down Lacey's tree and ducking through her back yard to avoid detection from her mother had waned, Danny took his time returning to his car which he had parked on the adjacent street. Without the looming threat of parental wrath, he could reflect on the incredible events of the day. He and Lacey had actually made love, more than once. The reality felt almost surreal and yet he could still smell her on his skin and taste her on his tongue.

Danny realized with a wry, inward smile that his mother's advice to him, while it had been embarrassing to an agonizing degree, had also been sound after all. She had told him to listen to Lacey's body and it turned out that was the only knowledge he'd needed. As nervous and uncertain as he had felt, Danny didn't hold a single doubt at all that he had pleased Lacey that afternoon because he had let Lacey's responses guide him. After spending the last hour and a half tangled in her arms, Danny wouldn't be surprised if he now knew her body better than he knew his own and vice versa.

He felt strangely exhilarated in that moment, almost normal. It didn't matter than he had spent five years in juvie or that he was currently under suspicion for another murder because neither thing felt like a barrier to his happiness any longer. His relationship with his mother was finally improving, his friendship with Jo was restored and stronger than it had ever been, Lacey had, at last, consented to be his girlfriend, he was starting to make a new friend _and_ he had just been given a spot on the school soccer team. His life was alarmingly close to perfection. The one thing that threatened to bring it all crashing down was that stupid necklace.

Keeping it hidden away in his room was no longer an option, he realized. He had to destroy it. There were too many bad memories associated with it. Only when it was out of his life forever could he truly put his past behind him and move on to a brighter future. Without that necklace, hopefully Chief Masterson would have nothing at all to tie him to the crime scene. There had been no further contact from the person who had deposited the necklace in his locker so perhaps, Danny mused hopefully, that was over too. Maybe he was finally going to catch a break for once in his life. Still, he needed to be proactive. He had everything he'd ever wanted for more than half his life within his grasp. There was no way Danny was going to allow anything at all to foul it up.

He was going over potential places to dump the necklace in his mind when his cell phone vibrated in his back pocket. Danny divided his attention between fumbling for his car keys to unlock the door and checking his phone. It was a text from his mother, straight forward and to the point.

 _Come home now. We need to talk._

Thinking that she was aggravated with him over how long he'd kept the car, Danny shot her a quick text back. _I swear the car is fine. I'm just leaving Lacey's house. I'm on my way._

He was surprised when her answering text maintained the same urgency as the first. _This isn't about the car, Danny. Get here when you can._

Danny quickly texted back. _What's wrong? Did something happen?_

 _We'll talk when you get here._

Frowning to himself with more curiosity than alarm at that point, Danny pocketed his phone, slipped behind the wheel and began the drive home, quietly contemplating what his mother could possibly want to discuss with him and whether or not he should be worried about it.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

Danny hoisted the bag filled with his soccer equipment more securely onto his shoulder and walked into his living room. He found his mother seated on the sofa with his Aunt Tara's necklace spread across her lap and almost dropped his bag. He knew without a doubt that he was about to catch hell. A cold chill of apprehension shivered through his frame. Any other teenager might have confessed their guilt immediately, especially after being caught red-handed but, Danny Desai was no typical teenager. He had spent five years perfecting the art of lying and, by now, it had become almost second nature to him.

"Hey, Mom," he greeted in a ridiculously casual tone, "I joined the soccer team today. My driving lesson went pretty well. And I filled the car up with gas. How about you?"

His mother remained unsmiling. "We need to talk."

He smoothly ignored the serious edge to her words and kept his tone light and unconcerned. "That's a pretty necklace. Did you buy yourself something new?"

"You know very well where I got this necklace, Danny," Karen replied softly.

Danny set his gear on the floor and blinked at her in owlish bewilderment. "No. I don't know. Should I?" It was a blatant stall tactic. He was already running over half a dozen plausible explanations for why he'd been in possession of the necklace. In the meantime, however, he chose to stick with straight denial. It was clear from the expression on Karen's face that she wasn't having it but at least it would buy him some time until he had a plausible story in place.

Karen Desai shifted to her feet, her features tight with anger and fear. "Stop lying to me. I found this in your room tonight, Danny, hidden beneath your mattress," she recounted stiffly, "You want to tell me how it got there?"

"I don't know how it got there," he denied calmly, "Why would I hide a necklace under my bed? And why does it matter? It's just a necklace!"

"This belonged to your Aunt Tara. Until I found it today, I thought it had been buried with her."

"So there you go," Danny replied lightly, "Case solved. You thought the necklace was misplaced but it was in the house all along. Hooray. I'm going to grab a shower now. It's been a long day and I'm exhausted."

He turned for the stairs with every intention of maintaining the lie and leaving it at that but his mother's next statement stopped him in his tracks. "Kyle Masterson came by the house again today."

Icy dread seizing his heart, Danny paused on the first step and gradually pivoted to face his mother with a carefully neutral expression. He gripped the stair rail tightly, his fingers flexing around the polished wood. "Oh yeah? What did he want?"

Karen dangled the necklace from her fingers, as if keeping it before Danny would weaken his denials. "He wanted to know if I had ever seen this before," she said, "He had a picture with him. Of course, I knew immediately that he was showing me Tara's necklace."

"Did you tell him that?" Danny asked with deceptive calm. He was inclined to think she hadn't, otherwise their home would be crawling with cops at that very moment. But, he had to be sure.

She appraised him with a probing stare. "Would it matter if I had?"

Danny shrugged. The gesture completely belied his inner agitation. "I'm curious that's all."

"Well then, you might also be interested to know that he told me something rather surprising about this necklace," Karen replied. She watched Danny's expression very closely as she spoke, hoping that his emotions might betray him despite his attempts at verbal evasion. "He said that Regina Crane had been wearing this the night she was killed and that it had gone missing shortly after that. Somehow, that girl ended up with your aunt's necklace and then _you_ ended up with it."

"There must be a hundred necklaces like that in the world."

"No, they're aren't. This is an heirloom. It was specially designed by your grandfather for your grandmother. It has been in your father's family for three generations and was given to Tara by her mother. Kyle Masterson insists that this necklace and the one Regina was wearing are the same."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Because I need to know..." Karen managed in a hoarse whisper, "Did you kill that girl, Danny? Is that how you got this necklace?"

Honestly, he had been expecting the question since the moment she began. Given the circumstances, it wasn't at all surprising that she would draw that conclusion but it still felt like a gut punch nonetheless. The fact that she so readily assumed his culpability was like physical pain. He recoiled from her with an anguished grimace.

"No! I didn't kill her!" he exclaimed thickly, "God, Mom! Is that really all you think I'm capable of?"

"Danny, this is the last thing I want to believe about you but, what else am I supposed to think?" Karen cried, "I find this necklace in your room, which is disturbing enough but then to learn that it also belonged to that poor girl..." She regarded him with wet, agonized blue eyes. "You tell me what I'm supposed to think, sweetheart."

"Apparently that your son is a murderer and that's all he'll ever be!"

"That's not fair and you know it!" Karen retorted, "You want me to believe in you but you're not giving me any reason at all to do so, Danny! Even now, you're lying to me and I can only think of two reasons why you would do that. Either you're guilty...or you're scared." When she noticed the subtle flickering in his eyes at the last of her statement, she added softly, "My gut tells me it's the latter."

She set aside the necklace on the coffee table and closed the distance between them, staring up at him with an earnest expression. "Honey, I can't help you if you're not honest with me," she told him gently. She watched him mount a visible struggle to trust her. "How did you get that necklace, Danny?"

"I don't know," he whispered after a long, tense silence, "That's the truth. I found it in my locker one day at school."

"You _found_ it in your locker?" Karen echoed dubiously.

"You wanted to know the truth? Well, that's the truth!" he flared, "Someone put it in my locker with a note that said, 'This belongs to you.' I knew how it would look, so I hid it. I didn't have a choice!"

"Why would anyone put that necklace in your locker?"

"I don't know."

Karen fixed him with a probing look. "Danny, what aren't you telling me?"

"I honestly don't know!"

"And that's it? Some anonymous person decided to drop the necklace in your locker and you have no idea why?"

"I have a theory," he revealed hesitantly. Now that she had managed to drag that much out of him, Danny was surprised and unprepared when the remainder of the story came spilling out of him without nearly as much resistance. "I was there in her house that night," he whispered, "The night Regina Crane was killed. I actually found her body and I knew she was dead long before it became breaking news."

Karen stumbled back a step, her breath leaking from her in a stunned gasp. "You were there?"

"She was already dead, Mom!" he replied quickly, "I swear I didn't touch her!"

"Why did you go there at all? What were you doing at her house?"

Danny mentally weighed the options of telling her the full tale. There was only so much he could reveal to his mother without also opening up a discussion about Tara and, frankly, he didn't have the emotional stamina to go tumbling down that rabbit hole. In the end, Danny decided to give his mother as much of the truth as he was able.

"When I was at her party, I noticed that she was wearing the necklace," he whispered, "I knew it was the one Aunt Tara used to wear the second I saw it. I asked Regina about it and she sort of blew me off but I could tell that she knew that it meant something to me. That night she texted me and asked me to come over to her house because she...she wanted..."

"...she wanted to have sex with you," Karen concluded flatly.

"Yeah," Danny grunted, "I wasn't interested in that but, I _did_ want to know how she got the necklace. So, I went over to her place to confront her about it and, when I got there, the back door was open and there was someone in her house."

"Someone? You mean the killer?"

"Yeah. He was still there."

Karen's response to that was swift and volatile. "What? You saw her killer?"

"He was wearing a mask," Danny recounted wearily, "I couldn't make out his face at all. When I saw him, I just reacted on instinct. I chased him through the house and we struggled and then he hit me in the head with something heavy. The last thing I remember is seeing him run from the house."

"My god, Danny, what the hell were you thinking?" his mother cried, "You could have been seriously hurt or worse!"

"Everything was really fuzzy after that. I don't think I blacked out but, I wanted to," he went on, "I felt dizzy and sick and it took me a while to get my bearings again." He was clearly not there with her mentally right then but transported back to that night instead. "When I thought I could get to my feet without falling on my face, I went through the house looking for Regina. I called and called for her but she never answered me. She was already dead when I found her, Mom. She was still warm so I don't guess it had been that long.

"After that, I kind of panicked. I wanted to call the police but I knew how it would look to them," he cried, his features crumpling with the frightened tears he had been holding at bay for weeks, "They would never believe me. They would think I did it and then they would send me back to prison and I didn't want to go back. I _can't_ go back, so I ran." As he started to break down, Karen quickly gathered him into her arms without hesitation. She tenderly stroked his heaving back as he wept into her shoulder. "I didn't do it, Mom," he sobbed, "I swear I didn't do it! You have to believe me...because if you don't, then I don't have anyone!"

Karen whispered soothing words of reassurance against his temple, her heart contracting painfully in the face of his complete emotional breakdown. In all that time since he had returned from Huntington, Karen had never once seen Danny as vulnerable and as frightened as he was right then. She felt the fierce need to protect him well up inside of her. It was a determination born from a mother's love and an indelible need to atone for failing him five years earlier.

When his sobs finally began to subside, Danny shrugged from her arms, trembling with fear and embarrassed over having lost his composure so thoroughly. Karen granted him a few moments to pull himself together before she spoke again. "Who else knows what you just told me?" she asked him quietly.

He sniffled, scrubbing his face of his remaining tears. "No one."

"Not even Lacey and Jo?" she pressed.

" _Especially_ not Lacey and Jo," he said, "I know how bad this looks. If Chief Masterson finds out that I was there the night Regina was killed, he's sending me back to prison. No questions asked."

"I'm not going to let that happen, sweetheart."

"You can't stop it. It's like I'm constantly walking on eggshells, waiting for him to come after me. Every time I start to think that things can be normal for me, something else happens and I realize I'm just lying to myself."

"Danny, this doesn't have to end with a worst case scenario."

"Doesn't it always?" He regarded her with wounded eyes filled with a mixture of hope and despair. "So, that's the whole story. Now what, Mom? Do you believe me? Because if you don't, if my own mother believes that I'm nothing but a cold-blooded killer then I _am_ truly worthless and I don't have a chance in hell."

Karen reached up to briefly cradle his cheek, her mouth turned in a bittersweet smile. "You are _not_ worthless," she said fiercely, "And yes, I believe you. If you say you didn't kill that girl then there's nothing else to discuss."

"But what about Chief Masterson?" Danny insisted, "If he's coming around here asking about the necklace then he must suspect that I have it."

"Maybe there's a reason for that," Karen considered, "For all we know, _he's_ the one who planted that necklace in your locker in the first place!"

Danny shook his head in denial. "No. I don't think he could do something like that."

"Never underestimate a man's capacity for deceit, Danny," Karen replied, her blue eyes gleaming with an embittered edge, "Especially when he feels justified. Kyle Masterson wants you as far away from his daughter as possible. He never believed that you should have had an early release. As far as he's concerned, you belong in prison. I wouldn't put it past him to plant evidence at all."

"But to frame me for murder?" Danny balked, "That seems way beyond, even for him."

"Who else would have access to your locker?" Karen asked, "Or even know where to find it, for that matter?"

"I don't know."

"We need to keep our minds open to the possibility," Karen advised him sagely. She descended into a few seconds of pensive silence. "Besides that necklace, there's nothing else to link you to that crime scene, is there?"

"I don't think so," Danny considered with a helpless shrug, "I suppose my prints are there but, since I was at her party, that can be easily explained away."

"Good."

"Why?" he asked her warily, "What are you going to do?"

"Don't worry about the necklace anymore," she reassured him vaguely, "I will take care of everything. You concentrate on school."

"Mom," he groaned, "I don't want you doing something that's going to get you in trouble."

"Danny, you trusted me to help you with this, so let me do it."

"I wasn't expecting you to do anything illegal!" he cried.

"Kyle Masterson is going to get a search warrant," Karen declared implacably, "And when he does, he is going to tear this house apart looking for that necklace. I will _not_ let him send you back to prison. I'll do whatever I have to do." She softened those intractable words with a reassuring smile. "You look tired. Why don't you go upstairs and get yourself ready for bed?"

Danny closed his eyes with an inward groan. "Mom, please-,"

"-Do you trust me, sweetheart?" she interrupted softly.

He regarded her with wet, wary eyes but nodded nonetheless. "Yes..." he answered slowly, "I trust you."

"Then let me take care of you."

Ten minutes later Danny stood beneath the steamy shower spray feeling as if he had been worked over by a skilled pugilist. He felt inundated with a mixture of conflicting emotions: fear, guilt, remorse but most surprisingly... _relief_. He hadn't realized just how burdensome his secret about Regina Crane's death had been until he finally shared it with someone. It was true that he'd needed to be backed into a corner to tell it and, had his mother never found the necklace, he likely would have never confessed to her at all. However, now that he had, Danny didn't feel any real regret. Somehow having someone else shoulder the secret with him made him feel a little less lonely.

Still, the situation was laden with potential disaster. Once his mother took responsibility for disposing of that necklace she would become guilty of tampering with evidence and obstructing justice. If she were to be caught, she would face prison time right alongside him. That prospect was a terrifying one. He didn't want his mother to ruin her life trying to protect him but, at the moment, his options were severely limited.

He had to consider that his mother's theory about Kyle Masterson might have some real validity. It was a difficult thing to do. He had always believed Jo's father to be a man of honest integrity and, given that fact, Danny had always maintained a deep respect for the man even in spite of his determination to keep Danny in prison. A large part of him still believed Kyle Masterson was everything he had always imagined, that he was a good and decent man. Besides there were other potential culprits. Danny simply could not shake the memory of that brief second of recognition in the eyes of Regina's killer.

His instincts told him that there was still much more to the story that he had to figure out. However, he couldn't afford to completely dismiss the possibility that Kyle Masterson hated him enough to plant evidence, especially if he felt justified due to his belief that Danny really _was_ Regina Crane's killer. It was no secret to anyone that Chief Masterson had never agreed with his early release. He could possibly view railroading Danny for Regina's murder as righting a wrong.

Danny couldn't believe he was even entertaining the notion at all. It was mind-boggling how quickly his life had changed in such a short period of time. That morning he had been learning how to drive and trying out for the soccer team. That afternoon he had made love for the very first time in his life to the girl of his dreams. And that evening he was seriously considering the chance that the father of his best friend might be trying to frame him for murder. He would probably laugh at the irony of it all if it weren't so debilitating and depressing.

After he emerged from the shower, clean but nearly as overwhelmed and exhausted as he had been when he first entered the stall, Danny threw on his pajamas and climbed into bed. He devoutly hoped the weariness of the day alone would be enough to bring on sleep. He was lying there in the dim lamplight, watching the slow migration of a tiny, spider across his bedroom ceiling when his cell phone buzzed. His lips curved in a small smile when he saw Lacey's home phone number illuminated on the screen. Danny answered her call with a grateful sigh.

"Hey."

"My bed smells like you."

Danny choked out a stunned laugh at her unorthodox greeting. "I'm sorry but, what?"

"My sheets smell like you," she whispered in clarification, "Like the soap you use. I don't want to wash them. When I'm lying in my bed, it's like you're there with me."

He flopped back into his bed and emitted a frustrated groan, firmly ignoring his body's most immediate reaction to her words. "God, Lacey, don't tell me things like that."

"I can't help it. I want you so much."

Danny released a shuddering breath. "I want you too. You don't know how much."

"Everything feels so different now."

"Yeah, I know...but in a good way."

"I just don't get it," she lamented, her words taking on an ironic edge, "We didn't even do that much cuddling afterwards and it was only our first time but, I still don't know how I'm going to be able to sleep in my bed without you. I miss having you next to me."

"Me too," Danny sighed despondently.

"Then you should come over and stay the night with me," Lacey suggested rather impulsively, "You don't even have to sneak in through my window. I'll smuggle you in by the front door this time. We can spend the whole night together. I'll even set my alarm so you can get out of here before my mom goes to work. What do you say?"

"That sounds a little reckless for you, doesn't it?"

"I _do_ know how to live on the edge, Danny."

"Yeah, right after you've figured out how far it is down to the bottom," he joked.

"Shut up," she giggled, "I don't care how much of a risk it is. I want to be with you. Will you please come over?"

"I really want to but...I can't," he replied regretfully, "It's kind of tense here with my mom right now and I don't really wanna rock the boat."

"I guess she's pretty pissed off about you keeping the car so long, huh?"

"Yeah, something like that..."

Danny was surprised by how much the lie bothered him. Not that he wasn't always bothered to some degree when he lied to Lacey but, his guilt was often outweighed by his feelings of justification for doing so. Danny didn't lie because he wanted to lie. He lied because he had to. Deceit and manipulation had been necessary skills if one wanted to survive juvenile correction. Danny Desai had been lying without let up for most of his life. He certainly didn't know how to stop now.

But, that didn't mean he didn't feel the prick of his conscience for doing so. He always did. But now, lying to Lacey felt ten times worse than it had before. He didn't know if that was due of the level of intimacy they now shared or simply because he was falling in love with her. Either way, he hated it. He hated deceiving her and abusing her trust. Unfortunately, by that point in his life, he didn't know any other way to be.

Besides that, with everything in his life in seeming downward spiral, Lacey was one of the few bright spots he had left. He didn't want to tarnish the time they had together with reality of his personal mess. Danny just wanted one thing that remained untouched by all the ugliness that was tied with his past and secrets and constant lies. He desperately wanted to keep what he had with Lacey separate from everything else. As far as Danny was concerned, his relationship with Lacey was the only thing keeping him calm and sane.

"So, are you grounded?" Lacey asked.

The question shook Danny abruptly from his self-deprecating thoughts. "I'm not grounded so much as I'm being closely monitored."

"Oh. I know what that's like."

"Sorry to disappoint you."

"It's okay," she sighed, "I know I probably sound ridiculous and desperate."

"You don't sound like that at all," he reassured her, "You sound like you miss me...which is nice to know because I miss you too."

"Yeah?"

His tone took on a dreamy quality when he said, "I thought about you the whole way home, Lace."

"You did?"

He could imagine her dimples flashing deeply as she grinned. "You were absolutely the best part of my entire day," he told her sincerely.

"I'll just bet I was," she laughed, "And I'm sure that had absolutely nothing to do with the fact you got me naked, right?"

"Says who? It had _everything_ to do with the fact I got you naked," he teased, "I guess talking to you was alright too."

"Oh wow. You're a real charmer, aren't you?"

"Apparently so. _You_ couldn't get enough of me."

If it were possible to physically hear someone roll their eyes, Danny imagined that Lacey's would be clanking around loudly in her skull right then. She confirmed his suspicion with her next words to him. "I don't know why I bother calling you at all," she groused, "You are, hands down, the biggest ass I know."

"But the real question is, do I have the biggest c-,"

"-Don't you dare, Danny! Don't you _dare_ say it!" she hissed in a squeal of laughter, "Oh my god, you are the worst!"

"That's not what you were moaning in my ear this afternoon."

" _Danny!_ "

"Okay, okay, okay, I'm done!" he surrendered gamely, "I don't want you to hang up on me."

"You're pushing it, buster."

"I'll be good from now on," he promised penitently, "But you have to admit that you left yourself wide open. How was I supposed to resist?"

"You have the mentality of a fourth grader."

"I know. It's a sickness."

"Are you sure it's all out of your system?"

"I might have one or two left but I'll keep them to myself."

"Good. Because I'd like to discuss something serious with you right now."

The quiet somberness in her tone wiped away all remaining vestiges of Danny's teasing laughter. He shifted upright on his bed, a small tendril of dread unfurling in his belly. There was absolutely no reason at all for him to expect she was about to tell him something bad but, his mind and heart automatically prepared for the possibility. After the life he'd had, he was conditioned to expect the worst. Bracing himself for what was sure to be impending disappointment, he mentally geared up for everything from Lacey expressing regret over sleeping with him to her wanting to break up with him altogether.

"Okay..." he said slowly, "What do you want to talk about?"

"I wanted to thank you."

That caught him totally off guard. "Thank me?" he echoed dumbly, "For what?"

"For talking to me. For trusting me enough to tell me about your dad. I know how hard it is for you to share that kind of stuff and...well, it meant a lot that you shared it with me. So...thank you."

Danny's feelings of guilt expanded to painful new degrees. "Lacey, I don't know what to say."

"I just want you to know that you can talk to me about anything, Danny," she told him fervently, "Anything at all. I'll always listen."

He wanted to trust her. Danny wished with everything inside him that he had the ability to do so. He waged an internal battle to reveal every part of himself to her...even the darkest, most twisted portions of his psyche. But he couldn't do that. He wasn't that naive. Despite all of Lacey's earnest promises, Danny fully believed the truth would drive her away. He would lose her. That eventuality was likely already set in stone but he certainly didn't want to hasten it along. While he mourned his failure to trust her and her words completely, he felt compelled to act out of self-preservation because experience had taught him a very harsh lesson early in his life. Eventually _everyone_ left. The same would be true for Lacey. That didn't mean he couldn't put it off for as long as he could.

Still, he murmured agreeably because he knew she was expecting it, "Thanks, Lace. I'll keep that in mind."


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Chapter Nineteen**

"You're doing that weird grin again and it's starting to creep me out."

Jo made that flat observation after watching Lacey, who was hopelessly distracted, filter rather aimlessly through the pile of Regina Crane's personal items that they had spread all across her bed. For the last ten minutes or so she had been vacantly staring off into space with a reflective smile, occasionally giggling to herself as if amused by some secret joke. Jo might have been able to tolerate the behavior if it weren't for the fact that there was quite a bit of personal correspondence that they still had to sort through. Yet none of that work seemed like a priority for Lacey at all. Her thoughts had clearly been someplace else all afternoon. And, the more Jo thought about it, the more she realized that Lacey's attention had been drifting like that for the last two days.

She didn't seem particularly worried about anything as far as Jo could tell. Truthfully, her mood could be described as...unflaggingly cheerful. Still, from Jo's viewpoint, it seemed inexplicable. Not that Lacey didn't generally possess a bubbly and optimistic personality but this was something else entirely. She was almost _too_ happy. In just the last 90 minutes alone, Jo had either caught her daydreaming wistfully or smiling like a loon no less than a dozen times. Sometimes, as she was doing presently, it was a combination of the two.

Exasperated by her wandering attention, Jo tore a sheet of paper from her spiral notebook and crumpled it into a ball. She pitched it at Lacey, striking her harmlessly in the center of her forehead. Lacey snapped from her latest reverie with an aggravated look directed at Jo.

"What? What did you do that for?"

"Maybe because I've been trying to talk to you for the last ten minutes and you keep zoning out on me," Jo argued.

"I do not." She stabbed a warning finger towards Jo. "And quit throwing things at me. I'm working here." She resumed picking through the remnants of Regina's things but, inevitably, the far-off look eventually returned to her eyes and her mouth started to stretch in a slow smile once again.

To test her theory that Lacey was indeed on mental vacation at the moment, Jo declared rather dryly, "Hey, Lacey? I've been thinking about running away to the circus. I'm going to marry a clown named Piccolo and have a carload of clown babies." She waved her hand back and forth before Lacey's blank stare. "What do you think of that?"

"You should do whatever makes you happy, Jo."

With a disgusted snort, Jo abruptly shoved aside Regina's pile and surveyed Lacey with an expectant look. "Okay, that's it! What gives?" she demanded, "You've been smiling like an idiot for two days and I want to know why!"

Lacey blinked at her, her lashes fluttering with exaggerated innocence. "What? I can't smile?"

"Your constant giddiness is bordering on disgusting, Lacey. _What...gives?_ "

"You know, you have really miserable outlook on life, Jo Marie," Lacey sighed expansively, "There's so much joy and beauty in the world and it saddens me deeply that you can't see it."

Jo responded to that by gagging theatrically. "Oh, don't try to turn this around on me," she retorted, "I'm not the one walking around here in a constant fog. I'm surprised you're even able to hold a coherent conversation with me right now."

Lacey's eyelashes fluttered anew. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Jo's reasonable curiosity gave way to outright suspicion with Lacey's deliberate evasion. "Oh, now I definitely know something is up," she declared astutely, "Spill your guts, Porter."

"There's nothing to spill," Lacey replied, only to ruin the denial by grinning.

"Ah-ha!" Jo crowed triumphantly, "You see! You're doing it again! First, you've been sporting that same goofy grin all weekend and today at school and then you proceeded to make googly eyes at Danny all lunch period and you're usually much more discreet than that," Jo recounted, ticking off each item with her fingers, "And now you're completely distracted from this Regina project when you're the one who's been gung ho about it from the beginning. So, I repeat...spill your guts, Porter. Tell me what's going on or I will be forced to take drastic measures."

Despite that dire threat, Lacey had difficulty controlling her dimpled smile, mostly because she knew it wasn't going to require much effort of Jo's part to get her to talk. Truthfully, she'd been fairly bursting at the seams to tell Jo about her and Danny since the day it happened. However, there was also the private part of her that wanted to keep the new sexual dynamic between her and Danny a secret a little while longer. She wasn't embarrassed or ashamed, rather she simply liked the idea of having something that was exclusively for her and Danny alone.

It was as if they were living on their own uncharted island in the middle of nowhere, where only the two of them existed. Lacey held some degree of reluctance to let in any outsiders. Then again, the teenage girl in her still wanted to share the news with her best friend. After all, it was a monumental rite of passage. She had lost her virginity to Danny Desai.

Each time the memory resurged, Lacey felt her insides quiver. She had been running on pure endorphins since that day. Even with the limited opportunities that she and Danny had been afforded to spend together, Lacey had been virtually floating from one day to the next on a constant high. Her all encompassing desire to be with him had inspired her with creative new ways to arrange being in his company every chance she got.

The day after they made love for the first time, Danny had been required to attend the Green Grove Ligers' away game. Though, technically as a brand new player, he wasn't going to do anything more than ride the bench, Lacey had wanted to be there to support him nonetheless. Obtaining permission from her mother to attend the out of town game hadn't been too difficult either since Judy had wrongly concluded Lacey was going for Archie. Lacey hadn't done anything to correct that assumption either.

When she recalled the delighted smile that brightened Danny's face when he spotted her in the bleachers that day, it had definitely made the awkward fight with Archie that followed worthwhile. Archie had, of course, erroneously assumed that she was there on his behalf and, when he realized that wasn't the case and that Lacey had actually attended for Danny, he had been livid. He and Danny had nearly come to blows over it. Coach Kenner had managed to get them both cooled down without further incident but, by then, everyone on the soccer team was pretty well aware that Danny Desai was dating their team captain's ex-girlfriend. By Monday, Lacey knew it would be all over the school.

Danny had been so adorably concerned that she would be upset, particularly because he knew how much she had wanted to avoid hurting Archie and drawing undue attention to herself. Strangely, however, while Lacey had been mortified by the scene Archie caused on the field and the near fistfight that had followed, she hadn't been particularly unhappy that her relationship with Danny had been exposed. Of course, there were still people who needed to remain in the dark about it, namely her mother but, she liked the idea of no longer having to pretend at school. It felt as if a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.

That evening, after returning to Green Grove, she and Danny had shared their first official date which began with dinner and bowling and later ended in frantic sex in the back seat of her car. Afterwards, she had dropped him off at home and the two shared a reluctant goodbye. The following day they weren't able to spend much time together at all. Danny had made plans to spend the day with his mother while Lacey had been roped into a mother-daughter golf game and luncheon with Judy at the Green Grove Country Club.

Practically the entire day passed without Lacey even _speaking_ to Danny so, by the time evening fell, she had been more than a little irritable. When she and Danny finally were able to talk late that night, Lacey was left dissatisfied and despondent once their phone call was over. It seemed as if, in a relatively short period of time, she had forgotten how to function apart from Danny. The realization was confusing and disconcerting. Thankfully, he seemed to struggle with the same difficulty.

She had been tossing and turning restlessly in her bed, trying to force herself to sleep when, a little after 12:30 a.m., Danny crept through her open bedroom window. After she managed to recover from the near heart attack he'd given her and irritation with him for scaring her in the first place, Danny spent the next few hours thoroughly exploring every inch of her body with his mouth and hands as proper atonement for his error. Unlike times before, their lovemaking had lacked its usual unbridled fervor and frenetic pace as they were both painfully aware of her mother sleeping soundly in her own bed just down the hallway. Shortly before dawn, Lacey had awakened alone with a note adorned with Danny's inelegant scrawl propped on the pillow next to her head. "You're the best part of every day," he'd written.

Those seven words had kept her smiling practically the entire day. The rumor mill was churning wildly by the time school reconvened on Monday but even the realization that _she_ was the topic of nearly every whispered conversation at school could not shake Lacey's good cheer. Her old social circle shunned her. The gossip about what she and Danny were doing together was stinging and merciless. But, it was easier to ignore all the negative chatter surrounding her when she kept focused on the good things she had. She could concentrate on little else beyond reliving the last time she and Danny had been together and eagerly anticipating the next time they would be.

Lacey didn't even realize that her mind had drifted off in that direction yet again until Jo smacked her in the face with yet another crumpled, paper ball. "Will you stop it?" she hissed.

She and Jo traded exasperated scowls with one another. "Stop glaring at me! You're the one who's throwing stuff!" Lacey cried in affront.

Unmoved, Jo crossed her arms stubbornly. "I wouldn't have to go to such extremes if you would just _talk_."

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you," Lacey relented, "But you have to promise me to be cool about it."

"When am I not cool?" Jo huffed in mild affront, "I'm always cool."

Lacey decided to test that claim by blurting out without preamble, "Danny and I had sex on Friday."

Jo was speechless for, at least, a full minute. She would open her mouth and then abruptly close it, only to try again and end with the same failure to form a complete sentence. Finally, she simply said the first thing that came readily to her mind, "What do you mean you had sex? You can't be having sex! You guys have only been dating for like two minutes!"

"So what? I've known him since before kindergarten," Lacey pointed out, "It's not like we're complete strangers! Besides, it felt right, Jo. It's never felt right with anyone before but, it did with him."

"Wow. I'm just...I'm shocked, I guess." Jo peered at her with an expression suspended between awe and incredulity. "You guys really did it?"

"We really did."

"That's huge. I guess you must be pretty serious about each other then, huh?"

"We...uh...haven't exactly talked about what it all means yet," Lacey hedged, "We're just...you know...going with it."

"So, wait a second. You're telling me that you two have already had sex with each other but you haven't even taken the time to discuss what that _means_?"

"It's implied!" Lacey's conviction lasted only a split second before she was surveying Jo with an uncertain glance. She nibbled her lower lip. "Do you think Danny and I are moving too fast?"

"What I think doesn't matter. I'm not the one who gave him my goodies. _You_ are. What do you think, Lacey? Do you feel like you're moving too fast?" Jo countered.

Lacey pondered the question for a moment before resolutely shaking her head. "No. I don't. Like I said before, it feels right when we're together," she whispered, "I'm happy right now. It feels good."

"Does it?" Jo whispered in wonderment. At Lacey's knowing grin, she tried to cover her inexperience with an eye roll. "I'm just curious. It has nothing to do with me being interested in having sex or anything like that. Please! I'm absolutely not ready to go there. Give me a break." She made an unconvincing attempt at scoffing. "Pfft. I have no interest. No interest at all."

"What do you want to know, Jo?" Lacey asked her softly.

Jo abandoned her endeavor at bravado without reserve. She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper when she asked, "Did it hurt?"

"A little bit. But not like I thought it would."

"How did it feel?"

A slow smile spread across Lacey's face. "Really good. Amazing. I've never felt so connected to him, like we were one person. The first time he was a little quick but after that-,"

"- _The first time?_ " Jo burst out incredulously, "You mean you've done it more than once already?"

"Well, yeah, we've done it a few times since then," Lacey admitted with an impish grin, "Including last night...on this very bed."

With that boastful revelation, Jo hopped up from the bed with lightening speed, her pretty features scrunched in a grimace of distaste. She affected a dramatic shudder. "Please tell me you washed these sheets in really hot water," she gagged.

"It's okay, Jo!" Lacey chuckled, "We were _under_ the covers the entire time. You can relax. You didn't inadvertently sit in a puddle of our love juice."

Jo gagged anew. "You are so gross."

Lacey sprawled across her bed in a fit of giggles. "Oh my god, you should have seen your face just now! I thought you were going to pass out!"

"I can see Danny's sense of humor is rubbing off on you," Jo intoned flatly, "That's not a good thing."

"Oh please, I'm not that bad," Lacey snorted.

Jo carefully resumed her perch on the bed but maintained her general look of uneasiness. "You're right. You're not nearly as funny as he is." She deftly ducked Lacey's sailing pillow. "But seriously..." she began genuinely a moment later, "...how do you feel about everything? Do you feel any different?"

"I guess I feel like, for the first time in my life, I know where I want to be and where I belong."

"And you feel like you belong with Danny?"

"Yeah, I do..."

"You're falling in love with him, aren't you?" Jo determined quietly.

Lacey acknowledged that astute observation with a mixture of apprehension, abjuration and awe. "I think I am."

Exactly on the heels of that admission, Danny chose that moment to climb through Lacey's open window. Both girls startled guiltily at his unexpected entrance. He hopped down from the chest beneath the window and instantly became aware of the resounding silence that ensued with his arrival. He bounced knowing glancing between Lacey and Jo. Danny had endured enough behind the back gossip in his life to discern when people were talking about him and both his best friend and his girlfriend had lousy poker faces. The more nonchalant they tried to appear, the more obvious they looked.

"What's up, you two?" he greeted casually, "Why do I feel like my ears should be burning?"

Jo shrugged, easily covering for Lacey's discomfiture. "Hmm...maybe because Lacey was just telling me how she made a man out of you, Desai. Congrats on the sex, by the way."

Lacey squealed in acute mortification before flopping face first into her bed. " _Jo Marie!_ What are you doing? I can't believe you just said that!"

Danny, however, was a great deal more composed in the face of Jo's irreverent ribbing. "Go ahead," he invited gamely, "Get all of the jokes out of your system, Masterson. I can take it."

"Who says I want to make jokes? I think it's so precious that you and Lacey cashed in your v cards together. Aww, look at you, standing there with your chest all puffed out. You're so adorable. They should totally make a Hallmark card for this kind of thing. I'm going to start a petition."

After expelling a mournful sigh, Danny directed an accusing look over at Lacey. "Really? You just _had_ to tell her, didn't you?"

"It's not my fault!" Lacey cried defensively, "She kept pelting me with paper! She was relentless! I had no choice! She made me talk."

"Like I wouldn't have figured it out on my own eventually," Jo snorted, "You two were practically having eye sex at lunch today. You're both ridiculously obvious."

Danny groaned in consternation. "Okay, so it's out in the open. Lacey and I have officially taken our relationship to the next level. Can we possibly change the subject now? Please?"

"I agree. Let's do that," Lacey chirped, hopping from the bed to greet him with a kiss. "Hi."

He smiled against her lips. "Hi." They staunchly ignored Jo's theatrical sighing in the background.

"I wasn't expecting you to come over until later," Lacey whispered, "How was practice?"

"Awful. Your ex has it out for me."

Jo thumbed through Regina's journal with distracted interest, deciding to throw in her unsolicited two cents. "Did you really think he was going to welcome you with open arms, Danny?" she asked, "I could have told you that was a disaster waiting to happen."

"I thought I might appeal to his sense of sportsmanship," Danny replied, "I figured that, although Archie might hate me, he wanted to win more and secure championships for the Ligers more than he wanted to make my life hell. After all, if I look good then the team looks good and, consequently, as team captain _he_ looks good."

"In other words, you thought you could manipulate the situation to your advantage."

"That's a very harsh way of putting things. I like to think of it as charming people over to my point of view. I'm a very likeable fellow, Jo. People love me."

"Hmm...and how's that working for ya, my friend?"

"Eh...he apparently has no sense of sportsmanship and he's immune to my charm. It's clear that he hates me _way_ more than he wants to win."

Lacey blew out a deep sigh. "I feel like this is all my fault. Have you talked to the coach about it? Maybe he can get Archie to lay off of you. Or I can talk to Archie myself, try to reason with him."

Danny didn't even take a moment to entertain either suggestion. "Don't sweat it. First of all, I don't want you talking to him on my behalf. And, second of all, I'm definitely not going to Coach Kenner about it either. I don't run and tattle. That's not my style. I can fight my own battles, Lacey. Besides, eventually Archie is going to have to deal with the reality of me as his teammate and as your boyfriend. And, if he can't get over it, that's his problem. Not mine."

"I just don't want you guys getting into yet another fight. Someone won't always be there to break you two up."

"Who knows? Maybe that's what needs to happen," Danny replied darkly, "Sometimes getting your ass kicked can provide some much needed perspective. Trust me." Before Lacey could question him about exactly what he meant by that statement, Danny hitched his chin towards the cluttered mess spread out across her bed. "Any luck with all of that?" he asked.

Jo shook her head and tossed aside Regina's journal. "We haven't found anything new," she said, "Besides Regina's diary reading like a trashy romance novel, there's really nothing to see here."

"Still no progress with the combination?" Danny asked in disappointment.

Lacey took hold of his hands and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "Not yet. But we'll find it." She reached up to smooth the furrow between his brows. "Don't worry so much." Lacey stepped closer to him, her voice dropping an octave when she whispered, "Will I see you later tonight?"

"Actually, that's the reason I stopped by," he told her, "Turns out my mom knew I snuck out last night after all. She's not very happy with me right now. I promised her I'd come straight home after practice."

"She's not going to let you out even for a few hours? My mom's working late tonight."

"Nope. Her plan is to keep eyes on me at all times. She's going to give me a driving lesson later this evening but beyond that? I'm on house arrest." He deliberately refrained from mentioning to her the reason he wanted to avoid aggravating his mother more than usual. Karen Desai was risking her own freedom to keep him safe. The least he could do was obey her edict to remain in the house after sundown. "She thinks I'm going to make things worse for myself by sneaking over here to see you in the middle of the night," he said, "She has a point. If your mom catches me, we're both dead."

"Okay, I get that but... How are we supposed to have a relationship if I can't be with you and you can't be with me?" Lacey pouted, "I hate this, Danny."

He leaned in closer, his forehead resting against hers. "I hate it too. I feel like I'm going to go crazy if I can't see you, Lace."

"Me too," she whispered.

From her perch on Lacey's bed, Jo began to shift uncomfortably as the two of them began exchanging small, searching kisses. "Do either of you care that I'm sitting right here?" Their intimate whispers, kisses and caresses gradually intensified with no acknowledgement of her whatsoever. She reddened and squirmed even more. "Nope. I guess you're just going to continue groping each other right in front of me. And...oh wow...he's just going to grab a handful of your ass like I don't have a panoramic view of that. Yep...this isn't awkward at all!"

Finally, after what seemed like eons in Jo's opinion, Lacey and Danny extricated themselves from each other's arms. After indulging in one, last lingering kiss goodbye, Danny directed a curt nod towards Jo that he completely ruined with an affectionate smirk. "Masterson," he said in goodbye, "It's been a pleasure to see you as always."

She extended him the same courtesy. "You as well, Desai. I'll text you later. You can give me _your_ version of the magical night you and Lacey had together." The two traded laughing eye rolls before Danny pecked a quick kiss to Lacey's lips and then nimbly navigated his way across the roof and down the tree just outside her bedroom window. Lacey watched him until he disappeared from her sight. When she pivoted to face Jo a moment later with the most besotted expression Jo had ever seen, the blonde girl couldn't repress her laughing snort.

"You are so hopeless. You act like he was just sent off on a tour of duty. You're going to see him tomorrow at school!"

"Stop teasing me, Jo," Lacey whined, moving to sprawl across her bed with a melodramatic sigh, "I miss him already."

"This is why I'm never falling in love. It makes you look like a complete idiot."

"I'm not being an idiot," Lacey protested in mild affront, "I'm lovesick. It's romantic."

Jo expelled a loud, exasperated groan. "It's dumb."

Lacey rolled a narrowed glare in her direction. "What's your problem, Jo Marie? Weren't you the one pushing for us to be together in the first place?"

"That was when I thought you two would be all cute and innocent, sneaking around to hold each other's hand and trading shy glances and smiles...stuff like that," Jo argued, "Kinda like how you were when we were eleven. That was so sweet. I had no idea you guys would be practically humping each other right in front of me! Speaking of which, there's not enough eye bleach in the world to make what I just witnessed okay. Never again."

Lacey grabbed the closest missile she could find, Regina's stuffed bear, and sent it flying. Jo caught it as effortlessly as a football pass. "You're going to have to do better than that, Porter." She started to toss it back at Lacey when a glimpse of black ink on the stuffed toy's tag suddenly caught her attention. Jo frowned and inspected the tag more closely.

Noting the gradual shift in her expression, Lacey pushed herself upright. "What is it?"

"There are numbers written on this tag," she said, "I think it might be the combination to the lockbox."

"Quick! Get it," Lacey replied, nodding to where the box sat untouched on her desk.

After Jo had retrieved it, the girls scrambled into the center of Lacey's bed together with the box between them. They expelled a mutual sigh of anticipation. "What are the chances that Regina really wrote the combination to this thing on the tag of her teddy bear?" Jo considered skeptically, "It seems a little obvious."

"I think the chances are pretty good," Lacey said, "Regina was never very good about thinking in the long-term."

"Okay. I'll read off the numbers," Jo volunteered, "and you turn the lock." After taking a deep, fortifying breath, she slowly read the numbers off to Lacey. "4. 24. 18."

Lacey pulled experimentally at the lock but it remained lodged in place. She shook her head in disappointment. "That's not it."

Not quite ready to give up, Jo said, "Wait. Try it again. This time go right three times for the first number, do a full revolution for the second number and then just turn the lock for the last one. That's the formula for every lock ever created."

With a suspended breath, Lacey tried the combination a second time. She jumped a little when she pulled and the locking mechanism released. The resulting click reverberated through the silence permeating her bedroom. Lacey darted a disbelieving glance at Jo. "It worked."

"Well, open it," Jo urged her impatiently, "I'm going to be so aggravated if this thing is filled with more pictures from her pageant days."

Lacey slowly flipped back the lid, her breath freezing in her lungs in a stunned gasp. There were indeed pictures within the lockbox, at least half a dozen candid stills of Robert Crane and Vikram Desai. In some photos it was obvious there was antagonism between the two men. In others, they were shaking hands, almost as if they were colleagues. Either way, there could be no further doubt that the two men had once known one another and had been _more_ than just casually acquainted. But what was most disturbing, beyond the pictures, was the massive amount of cash tucked within.

Jo emitted a low whistle, plucking up one of the neat bundles of hundreds and flipping through it. "There must be at least $100,000 here, Lacey! Maybe way more. What the hell was Regina into?"

Overtaken with a sudden trembling, Lacey tentatively fanned her fingers over the rows of bills. "I have no idea! She never said anything about this before. I don't know where she could have gotten her hands on this kind of money!"

Also nestled inside the lockbox along with the pictures and the money was a single, letter sized envelope. Jo tugged it free and inspected its contents. Inside, she found more cash along with a short, type written note. She quickly scanned the letter, paling dramatically as she read before finally passing the note to an anxious Lacey. "I think I have a pretty good idea how Regina got all of this money," she said as Lacey read the words out loud:

"This is the last payment. Do not contact me again or there will be consequences."

She and Jo locked eyes in a fearful stare. "Blackmail," Jo concluded grimly.


	21. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty**

"If you guys ask me, and I know that you haven't but I'm telling you anyway because someone needs to be the voice of reason here. You are in _way_ over our heads right now," Rico declared.

He paced the Desai family's living room in frenetic circles, alternating between tugging at fistfuls of his hair and biting at his ragged fingernails. By ill timing and not by the design, the self-proclaimed math geek and mystery buff found himself embroiled in the center of his own personal mystery. He had simply dropped by Danny's house to retrieve a textbook he'd inadvertently left in the seat of Karen Desai's BMW. When Lacey and Jo arrived less than five minutes later, hiding a metal box between them stuffed to the corners with neatly bundled hundreds, Rico knew instantly that he had just stumbled into something huge.

"I don't know everything that's going on here...and I'm not really sure if I _want_ to know," he continued in a disjointed rant, "But we have a case full of money and a dead girl! In every mystery I've ever read, these are not good combinations! I'm not getting a really great vibe here! You guys should take this money to the police and let them sort it out! They're the experts!"

Danny slowly came to his feet, shaking his head in refusal before Rico had even completely concluded his monologue. "No," he declared implacably, "Absolutely not. No cops." He directed Rico with a hard, implacable look. "This stays between the four of us."

"You can't be serious!" Rico burst out.

"Keep it down," Danny hissed, "I don't want my mom to know about this, okay! Let's just take a minute. Take a breath and we'll figure out what our next move should be."

"I vote for dialing 911," Rico muttered, that comment earning an impatient glare from Danny.

Jo shocked them all by curbing her own natural tendency towards shortsighted recklessness and backing Rico's argument. "He has a point, Danny," she uttered softly, "We don't have a clue what type of people we're dealing with and I'm scared. Regina Crane was obviously into some pretty heavy stuff here. Whoever sent her that money and the note could have very well killed her too. For all we know, they could have also had something to do with your dad's death. I agree with Rico. We're in over our heads."

"No!" Danny protested, his tone sharp and decisive, "If I take this to the police then they're just going to find a way to twist it all around and make me look guilty. I'm not doing it."

"Not my dad!" Jo argued, "We could reason with him! He would help you, Danny!"

Danny emitted a derisive snort. " _Especially_ your dad, Jo. He wants me back in prison. That's the only thing that matters to him!"

Desperate, Jo bounced a beseeching glance at Lacey for support. "Talk to him," she pleaded, "He'll listen to you!"

"Don't do that!" Danny bit out with an affronted grimace, "Don't try to use my feelings for Lacey to manipulate me!"

Recognizing that he was truly beginning to grow agitated, Lacey made a cajoling gesture with her hands indicating that Danny should bring it down a notch. "Calm down," she soothed, "No one is trying to manipulate you, Danny. But you have to admit that this is way more serious than any of us anticipated. The kind of money Regina was keeping...who knows what or who she was involved with!"

"Then let's figure it out," Danny proposed capriciously, "We don't need the cops to do that."

While Lacey and Jo traded uneasy glances over that idea, Rico tossed Danny a look that clearly questioned his sanity. "What exactly are you suggesting here?"

"There's a return address on that envelope," Danny said, "Why don't we go there and see what we find?"

Rico processed that ludicrous suggestion with a series of rapid, disbelieving blinks. "Okay, so let me get this straight," he uttered, "You think four, unarmed teenagers showing up on the doorstep of a potential _killer_ is better than going to the police so that they can do their _jobs_? Are you nuts?"

Danny drew himself up stiffly, his jaw set with an obstinate edge. "None of you are obligated to go with me," he determined tautly, "I can do this on my own."

The unspoken implication that being on his own was how he did most things had Lacey regarding Danny with a hurt expression. "God, Danny, don't be like that! It's not fair!"

"Be like what?"

"Build up a wall and shut us out! We're not the enemy, okay!"

"I know that, Lacey," he acknowledged quietly, "I'm not trying to make you out to be the enemy. But it's very easy for you guys to make it into a simple matter of going to the cops because it's not _your_ freedom on the line here! It's _mine_! It's _my_ freedom! I'm not going back to prison. That's the end of it."

Rico regarded him with an inquisitive stare. "I guess that's the part I don't understand," he mumbled, "Why do you seem so convinced that you _will_ go back?"

Jo and Lacey regarded him with equally expectant expressions but Jo was the one to verbally push him for answers. "That's a really good question, Danny? Why are you so convinced?"

Whether or not he ever had any intention on answering that question became a moot consideration because, at that precise moment, a sharp knock sounded at his front door, followed by an official bark of, "Police! Open up!" Danny surveyed them all with a brief look of embittered irony, his conviction that the validity of his argument had just been proven perfectly clear in his expression. "Put away the lockbox and the note, please," he instructed Lacey brusquely, "I'd like not to give them _more_ ammunition than necessary to harass me."

Lacey started to rise and follow him but, Danny refused her silent objective with a sharp shake of his head. "Don't," he urged her softly, "I'll be fine. Wait here."

Another round of pounding on the front door sounded and Lacey jumped. "Danny, I'm scared."

"Don't be scared," he assured her, "I'll be back..." Only to add in an uncertain mutter as he turned away from her, "I hope." With his countenance set in a deep scowl and his spirit prepared for battle, Danny stalked from the living room for the front door.

When he yanked it open he concealed his uneasiness and fear over finding Chief Kyle Masterson standing outside with two armed deputies. The flashing red and blue lights beyond them alerted Danny to the fact that this wasn't going to be the chief's run of the mill fishing expedition. "Chief Masterson," he sighed wearily, "I see you've come calling yet again. I'd ask what brings you by but, it's gotten a bit tedious by this point. Wouldn't you agree, sir?"

"I'm here on official business, son."

Danny angled a glance over his shoulder at the police cruisers situated at various angles at the end of his driveway. "Somehow, I picked up on that," he remarked dryly, "Let me save you the trouble and I'll just grab my jacket. It's a little cold tonight. You won't even have to bother with handcuffs."

"I'm looking for your mother, Danny," Kyle informed him, "Is she here?"

"My mother?"

Before Danny could even begin to formulate his lie, however, Karen came to stand alongside him. She regarded Kyle Masterson with a flinty expression while casually drying her hands with a dish towel. "You do remember what we talked about the last time you were here, don't you, Kyle?" she asked, "I hope you have that search warrant otherwise the next call I make will be to my lawyer."

"I have a warrant, Karen," he replied grimly, "But it's for your arrest."

"Excuse me?" both Karen and Danny exclaimed simultaneously.

Kyle Masterson took hold of Karen's forearm and pulled her forward to place her in handcuffs. When she started to yank away from him, he said against her ear, "Don't give me a hard time about this, Karen. You'll make it uglier for Danny." With that implied threat directed towards her son, Karen offered little resistance as he snapped the metal bracelets in place over her slender wrists. Kyle Masterson calmly began reading Karen her miranda rights while Danny flipped out completely. Karen tried rather futilely to calm him down. She glowered at Kyle over her shoulder.

"Why are you doing this?"

"Karen Desai, you're under arrest for obstruction of justice and tampering with evidence."

Danny then told Chief Masterson using very succinct and blistering expletives what he thought of those charges. "You don't think I know what you're doing right now?" he cried furiously. His efforts to get between his mother and Masterson was easily thwarted by the chief's deputy. "This is a freaking joke! You can't do this! You can't arrest her! She hasn't done anything wrong!"

"Do you remember that ride you took out to Pascal Lake the other night, Karen?" Kyle reminded Karen smoothly, "You were so distracted you didn't even know you were being followed. You went walking along the edge of the lake and you threw something in the water...or so you thought. But it landed on the rocks instead. And you know what it was? That necklace you claimed you had never seen before. That's quite a coincidence, don't you think?"

He watched Danny carefully for his reaction, not at all surprised when the teen grew excessively more agitated with that reveal. "Mom, no! Tell me you didn't do that! Please, tell me you didn't! I can't let him do this to you! I can't-,"

"-Danny, keep quiet!" Karen interrupted him sharply, "Not another word. Go back into the house, sweetheart. I can handle this. Just go back inside."

"He's _arresting_ you, Mom! He's going to take you to jail! I can't let him do that! I can't!"

"It's okay," Karen soothed him, seeing very clearly that he was beginning to splinter apart emotionally, "Baby, it's alright. Go back in the house and I'll be okay. I promise you. Let me take care of this. Let me take care of _you_."

Sensing Danny's ever increasing vulnerability, Chief Masterson said, "You can fix this, Danny. She doesn't have to go to jail if you tell me the truth about how she got a hold of that necklace. We can make this whole thing go away."

Karen angled a feral look over her shoulder at him and hissed from between clenched teeth, "You shut your mouth! Don't you _dare_ talk to him! If you're going to arrest me, then arrest me, Kyle! But you leave my son out of it!" Just as she tried to force him to lead her out of there before her increasingly hysterical son could completely blow his future apart, Jo, Lacey and Rico all materialized at the front door with fearful, confused expressions.

With stunned incredulity, Jo assimilated the flashing police lights, Danny's hysteria and Karen Desai's handcuffs in no particular order. "Dad? What...what's going on right now?" she asked in a slow, disbelieving tone, "What are you doing? Are you arresting Danny's mom?"

That single question seemed to unleash utter pandemonium. Lacey, Rico and Jo came at Kyle with simultaneous demand for answers and clarification while he blustered angrily over finding Jo and Rico at the Desai home at all. At the same time, he was forced to order his one deputy to drag Karen to the police cruiser while the other struggled to keep a belligerent Danny in line. Only Karen Desai's hysterical screams for him to stop and keep his head managed to keep Danny from coming to actual blows with the officer. Frustrated, angry and helpless, he ran back into the house with a worried Lacey whirling immediately after him. Once they were gone and he was left alone with his daughter and her best friend in relative calm, Kyle felt freer to unleash his full displeasure.

"You are seriously testing my patience, young lady. Get in the car...both of you," he ordered them, nodding towards his SUV, "You're both going home right now."

Jo crossed her arms obstinately. "No. I'm not going anywhere with you," she bit out, "Not until you explain to me why you just showed up out of nowhere to arrest Danny's mom!"

"This is not a freaking negotiation, Jo Marie!"

"You just arrested my friend's mother!" Jo flared, "I have a right to know why!"

"Ask him!" her father retorted furiously, "Why don't you ask the boy you're so willing to gamble your future on, Jo! Ask the boy who's been lying to you every opportunity he gets!"

"I will!"

"I don't want to have to force you into the car," Kyle grated.

"Then don't," Jo said, "Because the only way you're going to get me to leave here is kicking and screaming, Dad!"

Clearly torn between the desire to do exactly that and recognizing the futility in such actions, Kyle Masterson bit out a frustrated curse and jogged over to where his deputies waited expectantly. After giving them both instructions to take Karen Desai to the station for her booking, he rejoined his daughter and her friend. He leveled Jo with a stern look of disapproval and warning.

"I'm going to give you twenty minutes," he told her, "And then we _are_ leaving, Jo, and you can kick and scream all you want."

Not exactly pleased with her father's intention to wait for her outside but lacking the time and initiative to argue with him about it, Jo ran back inside the house with Rico close on her heels. The scene they found waiting for them in the living room, however, brought them both to an immediate halt. Lacey knelt on the floor before a visibly distraught Danny, tearfully pleading with him to talk to her. It was clear that he was someplace else entirely right then. He rocked back and forth on the sofa, muttering to himself unintelligibly, his eyes fixed ahead in a sightless stare, his fingers bunched so tightly in the edges of the cushions that it was surprising that he didn't completely rip through the fabric.

Lacey threw a helpless glance over at Jo. "I don't know what to do, Jo!" she cried, "He's been freaking out like this ever since we came back into the house! I don't know what's wrong him! He won't talk to me!"

Jo recognized what was happening to him almost immediately. She was all too familiar with PTSD flashbacks and she didn't need any expert to tell her that Danny was trapped inside a rather horrifying one right then. She dropped down to her knees and scooted next to a tearful Lacey to cover Danny's quivering fists with her hands. "It's okay," she told him gently, "You're safe now, Danny. You're in your own house and you're surrounded by your friends and we love you. Whatever it is you're seeing right now, that's not real. It happened a long time ago, but that's not real now. Do you understand?"

He turned his glassy stare towards her, his breath leaking from his lungs in a shuddering sigh. "It's not real now. It's not real now."

"No. It isn't. That's all in the past and none of it can hurt you anymore. You need to put it away from you and calm down, okay," she urged him, bouncing a look over at Lacey, "You're scaring Lacey. And you don't want to do that, do you? I know how much you care about her and how much you want to protect her."

Danny regarded Lacey with a mournful look, his dark eyes brimming with unshed tears. "No," he whispered, shaking his head as his grip on the sofa cushions gradually relaxed, "I don't want to do that." He leaned into Lacey, who gratefully gathered him into her arms. "I'm sorry. I don't know where that came from."

Lacey accepted that apology with a relieved whimper. She framed his face in her hands and peppered his forehead and cheeks with kisses. "It's okay. Don't apologize. I'm just glad you're okay now." She rocked back on her heels to scan his face with searching eyes. "Does that happen a lot?" she asked him softly, "I've never seen you like that before."

"I just...sometimes I shut down when I get really overwhelmed or stressed, that's all," he replied in a gruff tone, "It hasn't happened in a long time now. I can usually get a better grip."

"That doesn't matter. Even if this was the only time that ever happened, once is enough. You have to talk to someone about it, Danny. That was terrifying."

Because he didn't know what else he could do, Danny mumbled apologies to her over and over again. "I don't want to scare you. I don't want you to see me like that." Lacey soothed him with sweet, soft kisses, murmuring nonstop reassurances to him. For the moment, Danny allowed himself to soak up her affection like warm rays of sunlight on a mid-summer day because he knew in a few, short minutes darkness would fall.

While Lacey preoccupied herself with comforting Danny and Danny mentally prepared himself for what he was about to do, Jo swiveled around to face an increasingly anxious Rico, acutely aware of the ticking timetable on which she'd been placed. "This is a nightmare," she groaned wearily, "I can't believe my dad just put Mrs. Desai in jail. I don't get what's happening!"

Rico fidgeted, fearfully darting his eyes between Jo and the front door. "Listen, I know Danny's upset right now but...your dad is gonna come charging in here any second, Jo, and that's just going to make everything worse!" he said, "We should get out of here! I've never seen him so furious!"

Lacey threw a glance at Jo over her shoulder. "It's okay. Rico's right. I'll stay with Danny. Don't piss your father off anymore than he already is."

"I'm not going anywhere with him! What he did just now was completely uncalled for!" Jo retorted, "I mean, what does he think he's going to accomplish by arresting Danny's mom anyway?"

"He thinks he'll get me to confess to murder." Those nine words, uttered in a tone completely devoid of emotion, commanded all the attention in the room. Three pairs of eyes swung around to Danny with nervous expectation. They watched as he calmly composed himself, scrubbing his face of remaining tears, and rose to his feet on shaky legs.

Danny walked over to the fireplace and leaned against the mantel. He deliberately moved as far away from them as possible in an attempt to impose a physical distance as well as an emotional one. "Chief Masterson thinks that by arresting my mother, he'll get me to break and I'll tell him why my mom threw Regina's necklace into Pascal Lake the other night."

Lacey squinted at him in confusion. "Regina's necklace? What are you saying? Why would your mom have Regina's necklace?"

"Because I had it," Danny revealed flatly, "It's been here in the house since Regina was killed and my mom found it the other day. That's the real reason she's been so strict about me staying home lately. And it wasn't _Regina's_ necklace at all. It belonged to my Aunt Tara."

"What? You...you lied to me?" Lacey uttered the words in anguished disbelief, as if she wasn't quite ready to accept that reality as truth.

But Danny provided brutal confirmation in his unfeeling reply. "Yeah, Lacey, I lied. I tend to do that."

Rico recoiled at the marked lack of remorse he seemed to display. "I don't understand. Why would Regina Crane have your dead aunt's necklace? Are you making this up right now?" He leaned in closer to Jo and whispered in a worried under-breath, "Are you sure he's really okay...you know, _in the head_?"

"I'm not crazy," Danny said, "I'm actually telling you the truth for a change."

"What are you talking about, Danny?" Lacey demanded with a tiny shiver of dread, "That necklace was stolen the night Regina was killed. Remember? No one has seen it since. If this is your idea of a joke, it's not funny!"

"It's not a joke and I'm not laughing," he said, "I had the necklace and my mom got rid of it so that I wouldn't be incriminated in Regina's murder. _That's_ the reason Chief Masterson arrested her tonight."

Jo shook her head at his claim, imagining that he must still be shaken up from his earlier episode. "Danny, you're wrong. My dad is on a witch hunt! He doesn't have any actual evidence to incriminate your mom!"

"You're not hearing me, Jo. Regina was wearing the necklace the night of the party," Danny recounted woodenly, "I remember feeling like I had been gut punched when I saw it hanging around her neck. All these memories of Tara went looping nonstop through my head. And Regina knew it. I don't know how she did but, somehow she _knew_ what that necklace meant to me."

"When you came out of the kitchen you were upset," Lacey recalled in a shaky whisper, "I remember seeing the look on your face and wondering what happened. That's why I went after you and Jo."

"I was honestly going to try to put it out of my head," he continued, "You showed up and we had this great night and everything felt so right. But then I got that text from her...from Regina and I had to know what she was hiding. I needed those answers."

Jo released a low groan filled with sickening dismay. "Danny...please, tell me you didn't..."

"I didn't kill her, Jo," he revealed in an eerily disconnected manner, "She was already dead when I got there. But that hardly matters. As far as he police are concerned, I'm as good as guilty."

Lacey struggled to process everything he had told them thus far but found herself mired in denial. "This doesn't make sense. What you're saying makes no sense! Why are you doing this? You were with me _all night_! I know that and so do you!"

"No. I wasn't there all night, Lacey. You fell asleep. I put a blanket over you and then I left for Regina's after that. I came back a little over an hour later, took a shower and then got into bed with you. I'd maybe had twenty minutes of sleep by the time my alarm went off."

It was difficult for her refute his claims then, not when Lacey could so vividly remember how exhausted and defeated he had been the following morning. Now his inexplicable bout of hopelessness that day was no longer a mystery to her. Now she understood fully what worries had been plaguing him.

"So what are you telling me right now? You just snuck over to her house in the middle of the night? To do what, Danny?" she demanded with rising accusation and fury, "To get answers? To force her to tell you how she got that necklace?" And then she flipped unexpectedly, diving headfirst into denial once more. "No. No! I can't believe it! I won't! You wouldn't lie to me like this! I know you wouldn't!"

"Her neck was broken," he revealed quietly, "I could tell even before I got close because her head was turned at an odd angle from the rest of her body. She had a gash to her forehead...I think from where she clipped the coffee table as her body fell. I remember her eyes were open and when I felt for her pulse her skin was still warm. She was dead though. I knew it the second I laid eyes on her."

Lacey clamped her hands over her ears, pinching her eyes shut a futile effort to drown out his words. "I don't want to hear this! I don't want to hear this!" she cried. But she couldn't obliterate the veracity of his confession, not when Regina's mother, in a moment of heartbroken grief, had revealed to Lacey something that no one else in the general public had known...the true cause of Regina's death, not strangulation as everyone believed but a broken neck. Danny shouldn't have known that. He _wouldn't_ have known that...unless he had been there, just as he claimed.

While Lacey descended into an emotional pit of anguish and wrestled with the numerous lies Danny had fed her, Rico once again resumed his anxious pacing. "So you're telling us that you went to confront Regina Crane the night she was murdered with the obvious intention of making her spill her guts to you and yet, _conveniently_ , you found her dead when you got there. We're just supposed to take you at your word that you didn't go there to hurt her?"

"Believe whatever the hell you want, Rico! She _was_ dead when I got to her house. In fact, her killer was in the process of making his getaway when I arrived. How's that for irony?"

Jo stumbled a step and gripped the edge of the sofa to keep from toppling over while, somewhere off to her side, Lacey dissolved into hiccupping sniffles as she fought to keep her tears under control. While Lacey waged the battle to compose herself, Jo began grilling Danny for answers. "What do you mean her _killer_ was making his getaway? You saw who killed her that night? Danny, you could have cleared yourself a long time ago with that information!"

"Yeah right," he snorted, "Like that was going to happen! Come on, Jo! You can't be that naive!"

"It's like he had his very own one-armed man," Rico muttered to no one in a particular.

Lacey began prowling the interior of the living room, her hands fisted at her sides, her face streaked with tears. "So you actually _saw_ Regina's killer that night? You _knew_ who murdered her and left her there to rot like she was garbage?"

"I didn't _see_ much of anything, Lacey! He was wearing a mask and I barely got a look at him!" Danny retorted, "I found him poking around in the house when I got there. I surprised him. We struggled and he hit me in the head with something. I don't know what it was but, I almost passed out. When most of the dizziness had passed I went to look for Regina and that's when I found her body."

She raked him with a disgusted grimace. "And so you just left her lying there?" she bit out accusingly, "You didn't bother to report what you had seen or anything? You just walked away like nothing ever happened?"

"Yeah. I walked away and I'd do it again. She sure as hell didn't have _my_ best interests at heart so why do you think I would risk myself for her when she was dead?"

"You _do_ know that Jo's father is waiting right outside, don't you?" Rico pointed out to him incredulously, "As soon as we leave this house, we're going to go marching straight to him to sing like canaries..." He caught a glimpse of Jo's flickering uncertainty in his peripheral vision. "Well, at least, _I_ am!" he amended gruffly, "What you did was a crime!"

"Wouldn't be the first. So, go ahead. Do what you gotta do, Rico."

Jo blew out a humorless laugh, caught somewhere between hurt and anger over Danny's dismissive air. "That whole next day, you acted all shocked at the news of Regina's death but you already knew she was dead," she scoffed, "You knew before any of us and then you spent that morning probing me about my dad's investigation. Was that because you wanted to make sure you weren't under any suspicion?" His reaction to that was nothing more than the subtle tightening of his jaw. "God, Danny, I don't believe for one second you're actually _this_ cold!"

"You don't know me as well as you think, Jo."

"I guess neither do I," Lacey spat, "So what did you do, Danny? Did you just take the necklace right off of Regina's corpse? Who cares that she was someone's daughter, someone's _friend_...that she was _dead_? Who cares that you let her freaking killer walk away? You got what you went there for, right?"

His eyes flickered with a nameless emotion before they hardened like polished stones. "Right."

"You lying son of a bitch!" Lacey wept, "I can't believe I ever thought that you'd changed...that I actually slept with you...that I thought I could lo-," She caught herself as her voice broke on a sob. "Oh my god, I'm such an idiot!"

Danny covered his wince of pain with a defiant glare. "You wanted the truth, Lacey. Now you got it. I don't know what else you want me to say."

"Don't bother! I'll say it for you. We're done, Danny!" Lacey bit out sharply, adding as she turned to leave, "I never want to see your face again."

He tried valiantly not to betray his crushing anguish over having Lacey walked out on him but Jo saw the hurt reflected plainly in his eyes as he watched Lacey storm out. She didn't believe for one second that he was as unaffected as he presented himself to be. She met his steely eyes in belligerent challenge.

"So what's your angle, Desai?" she demanded, "You've been keeping this a secret for weeks. Why give it up now? What do you have to gain?"

"I won't let my mother be used as a pawn! Your father has been looking to pin this murder on me since the beginning. The way I see it, I've just given you all the ammunition he needs to do exactly that." He lifted his shoulders in a defiant shrug. "So tell him to come at me, Jo. I'm ready."


	22. Chapter Twenty One

**Chapter Twenty One**

"If you came in here to tell me you told me so, I really don't think I can handle that right now, Mom," Lacey mumbled despondently when Judy entered her bedroom. She burrowed her head deeper into her pillow, hoping to conceal her puffy features from view. It was a fruitless effort. Her mother was already aware that she had been crying and for what reason as well.

Kyle Masterson hadn't wasted any time bringing Judy up to speed on what Lacey had been doing the past month with Danny. She didn't really have a great many details beyond the fact Lacey, Danny and Jo had rekindled their friendship and that Danny was possibly involved in some illegal activity. She later learned from a hesitant Clara that Lacey had been secretly dating Danny for the past week or so. At first, Judy had been furious to discover the depth of Lacey's ongoing deception but, in the wake of her oldest daughter's abject misery, she couldn't quite follow through on any real punishment, not when it was clear Lacey was devastated. She hadn't even pushed Lacey to attend school that day because she'd been so distraught.

"You haven't stepped foot out of this room or eaten anything all afternoon, Lacey," Judy murmured in concern, "I'm not here to say 'I told you so.' I'm worried about you."

Lacey curled herself into a tighter ball. "I'm not hungry, Mom. I just want to be by myself."

Judy sat down on the bed and reached out to pat Lacey's shoulder. "If you want to talk about it, I'll listen, sweetheart. No judgment. I promise."

"There's nothing to say."

"Will you, at least, tell me why you're so upset?" Judy cajoled, "Did you and Danny have a fight? Did you break up? Kyle say much beyond implying that Danny was in trouble again and that you and Jo were in the middle."

"Don't worry, Mom. It's pretty simple. Yes, Danny and I are over and I'm a gullible idiot. Turns out he isn't the person I thought he was," Lacey sniffled, her embittered words muffled by her pillow, "And this incredible thing I thought we had between us wasn't so incredible after all."

"Oh, honey," Judy sighed sympathetically, "For what it's worth, I know a little something about that." Lacey turned her head slightly to peer up at her mother with one eye. "I won't tell you that I know exactly what you're going through, Lacey, but I know how it feels when you think you know the man you love and then discover that everything you had between you was a lie. It makes you question your judgment and it shakes your faith in everything."

Lacey shifted onto her back, facing her mother fully for the first time since Judy had entered the murky confines of her bedroom. "Is that what happened with you and Dad?" she wondered thickly, "Did he lie to you and shake your faith in everything?"

"He did. He wasn't the person I thought he was and that was hard to accept."

"What did he lie about?"

"That's not my story to tell, baby girl. It's his...when he's ready."

"But I've blamed you this whole time for the divorce..." she whispered gruffly, "...because I thought you didn't want him and you threw him away..."

Judy leaned forward to press a tender kiss to Lacey's forehead. "I've given you plenty of other reasons to blame me, sweetheart," she murmured, "Instead of being a mother to you and Clara, I tried to validate my self-worth through work because it was the only thing that made me feel good about myself and I alienated you in the process. I know that we have a lot to work out between us and I can't expect an overnight fix with you but...I won't tolerate any more lies. I am your mother and I deserve that respect from you."

"I only lied to you because you wouldn't let me see him."

"I didn't want you to get hurt."

Lacey averted her head, fresh tears filling her eyes. "And that's exactly what happened, isn't it? So, go ahead. You can say 'I told you so.' You've earned it."

"I told you I'm not going to do that," her mother reiterated gently. She reached over wipe away the tears that meandered over the bridge of Lacey's nose. "Jo is downstairs waiting. She wants to come up and see you. Is that alright?"

Though the last thing she wanted was to engage in conversation, Lacey consented nonetheless. "Sure," she relented in a dull tone, "Send her up."

Lacey had only just finished shifting herself upright in her bed when Jo arrived. The blonde girl stopped short in the threshold, quickly processing Lacey's puffy face, wild hair and rumpled pajamas. "You look like hell," she stated without preface, "No wonder you skipped school today."

"Gee thanks, Jo," Lacey replied sarcastically as Jo came to sit on her bed, "You don't look much better, by the way."

And she didn't. Her typically pale skin was even paler than usual, her eyes smudged underneath with dark purple, her unruly hair pulled back into a disheveled topknot. She looked as if she'd simply rolled out of bed and thrown on the first thing she could find that morning and Lacey told her as much.

"That's exactly what I did," Jo told her, "I couldn't deal with my dad so I've been avoiding him most of the day. When the last bell rang, I ducked out the back doors and came straight here."

Lacey tipped an uncertain glance up at Jo from beneath her messy curtain of hair. "Was _he_ there?" She hated herself for even caring but she couldn't quite stamp out the part of her that needed to know.

"Nope. He didn't show up either."

"Hmm," Lacey responded with a pensive grunt, "What about your dad? Did you tell him everything Danny told us last night?"

"Not a word. I had to twist Rico's arm into keeping quiet too. He's half convinced Danny really _did_ murder Regina and now he's trying to play us."

"What do _you_ think?"

Jo released an expansive sigh. "I think he's a liar and a jerk _but_ , I don't think he killed anyone."

"He still left her there," Lacey mumbled tightly, "Their housekeeper didn't discover her body until almost noon. How could he just walk away and pretend that nothing even happened?"

She remembered waking up in his arms that morning and the recollection of his composure afterwards chilled her. She couldn't fathom how he could have simply returned home, nonchalantly showered and then pulled her into his arms to fall asleep like he hadn't just made the most gruesome discovery possible one hour prior. But he _had_ done that. And, if his attitude towards them last night had been any indication, he didn't feel an ounce of remorse over it either.

As if sensing Lacey's racing thoughts, Jo said, "Come on, Lacey. Be fair. Do you really blame him for not sticking around? Honestly, what do you think would have happened if he'd called the police that night?"

"He could have done it anonymously. He had choices, Jo."

"Maybe he was scared," Jo reasoned.

"Are you seriously defending him?" Lacey gasped in disbelief.

"I'm just saying I saw his face last night after my dad took Mrs. Desai into custody. We _both_ did. You saw how he fell apart afterwards. Do you really believe that same guy could have walked away from finding Regina Crane dead and not felt anything at all?"

Lacey lowered her eyes, picking at imaginary specks of lent on her quilt. Danny's breakdown from the night before was inscribed on her brain. She could still remember how his entire body had trembled uncontrollably and the haunted, horrified expression on his face. "That's what he told us he did."

"Because that's what he wants us to _believe_ , Lacey," Jo emphasized, "If we've learned nothing else about Danny in the years we've known him, it should be that he is quite an accomplished liar. Why shouldn't he be? He's been doing it since before he was in grade school."

"And why would he want us to believe that he's a heartless monster, Jo?"

"So we would walk away from him," she concluded softly. She gave Lacey a moment to absorb that revelation before she continued. "After I got home last night, I couldn't sleep at all. I kept going over everything in my head again and again and what Danny _told_ us and how he _acts_ is completely different. I honestly think, in his own warped way, he's trying to protect us."

"Protect us from what?"

"I don't know. From the truth. From himself. From whatever demons he still has inside of him, I guess."

A flicker of hope sputtered to life in Lacey's heart but, in a moment of pure self-preservation, she extinguished it. "I think you're reaching right now, Jo," she said, "Danny wanted Regina's necklace and he got it. That's why he went over there that night. That's all that mattered to him."

"He didn't have to tell us _any_ of that, Lacey," Jo argued softly, "Think about it. His mother had just been arrested. He could have given us a dozen different excuses on the reason why or pretended to be just as in the dark as we were and we would have believed it because he's so damned convincing about everything! But, he didn't do that. Instead, he confessed something that none of us even suspected of him. It was deliberate...like he was doing it to push us away."

"You're grasping at straws because you want to believe the best in him," Lacey said with a weary wave of dismissal.

"And you're burying your head in the sand because you're _afraid_ to," Jo countered tartly. She softened her tone when Lacey flinched. "Listen, I know you stand to lose a lot more than I do in this. Danny is my friend and I love him like a brother. It sucks that he lied to me. I'm disappointed and hurt but it didn't obliterate my world or anything. But it's different for you. You're in love with him and I know that having him shut you out all the time must feel awful."

"He _lied_ to me, Jo, over and over again," Lacey emphasized thickly, "For weeks, I've been telling everyone who will listen that Danny couldn't have possibly killed Regina, that he was nowhere near that crime scene because I knew he had been with me the entire night! But he wasn't. He left to go to Regina's, just like your dad theorized he had.

"He's stood by all this time and let me defend him again and again like an idiot when he knew what your dad was saying about him was true!" Lacey ranted, "It doesn't matter that he didn't kill Regina that night. He still played me for a fool."

"And what would you have done if he had told you the truth?" Jo wondered softly.

Lacey was surprised to realize she didn't have a ready answer for her. "I don't know," she whispered.

"That's the point," Jo replied, "Maybe Danny didn't know either. He didn't keep the truth from you because he wanted to make a fool out of you, Lacey. I think he did it because he was scared to lose you. He was scared to lose us both."

"So what are you suggesting right now? We just forgive him and let bygones be bygones?"

"I'm suggesting we give him the benefit of the doubt. Let's not write him off so quickly, okay," Jo urged her quietly, "We promised we wouldn't do that each other ever again. Remember?"

Ten minutes after half-heartedly conceding to Jo's argument, Lacey was showered and dressed in a t-shirt, a pair of comfortable, black sweat pants and crisp, white sneakers. She pulled back her long, dark hair and secured it in an unkempt ponytail. It wasn't her best look but Lacey wasn't in the mindset to impress anyone.

In the interest of being honest, she informed her mother of her and Jo's intention to visit Danny. The forgotten box of Regina's belongings provided a valid, if not convenient, excuse for her return. "I left some stuff over to his house the other night," Lacey explained to her mother, "We're going to pick it up. I shouldn't be too long."

Judy didn't like it and, in fact, she was rather vocal about her reluctance to allow Lacey to go but, in the interest of maintaining the tentative peace between them, she relented and provided Lacey with a timetable. "Two hours," she said, "If it's going to be longer than that, you need to call me otherwise I'm calling the authorities. Are we understood?"

"We're understood," Lacey murmured.

As she and Jo drove over to Danny's in gloomy silence, Lacey was still mostly convinced that they were wasting their time by going back over there at all. She was also not quite ready to face Danny again so soon after discovering all the secrets he had been keeping from her. Until last night, Lacey had truly believed that he was beginning to trust her. She had believed that he was finally warming up to the idea of confiding in her. Now, she realized, he had only been telling her what she wanted to hear. Danny Desai was as much an enigma to her now as he had been when he first returned to Green Grove. The only difference then and now was that she knew what he looked like naked.

And perhaps that was the thing that galled Lacey the most. She and Danny had shared something so intimate, so beautiful, so profound that she couldn't imagine putting anything between them, _especially_ secrets and lies. She had wanted to open heart up to him as completely as she had opened her body. There was not a single part of her that she had kept from him. She had given him her entire soul and he had only given her bits and pieces of himself in return. In essence, she had given her virginity to an absolute stranger. It was a bitter truth to swallow.

By the time Lacey and Jo reached the Desai home, any small bit of enthusiasm Lacey might have had for confronting Danny again had waned completely. She trailed behind Jo on the walkway, wishing devoutly that she had yielded to her instincts and stayed in the car. Oblivious to Lacey's hesitation, Jo rang the doorbell and then, when she didn't receive a response quickly enough, followed that with a round of firm knocking. They didn't receive an answer.

"Well, that's it," Lacey said with a shrug, "I guess they aren't home."

One glance at Jo, however, confirmed that her determination to talk to Danny had not yet been shaken. "We should go around back," she suggested, "Mrs. Desai always kept a spare key hidden beneath the flower pot on the deck."

"Don't you feel even a little bit uncomfortable to be breaking and entering?" Lacey wondered grumpily as they crept around the side of the house together, "I mean, you are a _cop's_ kid after all."

"It's not 'breaking and entering' if you have a _key_ , Lacey."

Seconds later, Jo had retrieved the aforementioned key and then proceeded to let herself into the house without a second thought. "Hello?" she called out as she eased through the back door into the laundry room. "Is anybody home?"

As Lacey followed Jo deeper inside the house, she felt a chill quiver through her body. The interior of the house was murky and shrouded in dim shadows. Despite the afternoon hour, all the blinds remained pulled shut, effectively blocking out the sunlight except for the weak rays that spilled through the wooden slates. It was also eerily silent. Not even the low hum of any household appliances could be detected. Lacey suddenly wondered if Danny had felt a similar uneasiness when he'd entered Regina's house the night she had been killed. She had no idea why that grim thought had come up into her mind at all but once it had, Lacey was suddenly filled with a swift, inescapable panic and, before she knew it, she was shouldering past Jo and screaming Danny's name.

Her brain was already playing a thousand macabre scenarios so that, by the time she found him slumped on the floor of the living room, she was already near hysteria. He was half propped against the couch, his head lolled off to one side. Her first horrible thought was that he was dead and she actually stumbled against the doorway under the weight of it. But then she noticed the brown, glass bottles littering the carpet and she realized he likely wasn't dead but passed out drunk instead. Needing confirmation, Lacey moved closer, noting the steady rise and fall of his chest with a shuddering breath of relief. In his hand, he loosely clutched the neck of another beer...as if he had lost consciousness just before he could take another drink.

"Oh god, Danny," she muttered, "What did you do to yourself?" Lacey had only just stooped down at his side to push his disheveled hair back from his face when Jo finally caught up with her.

"What's going on?" she panted, "Why were you..." She lost her train of thought when she caught sight of Danny on the floor. "Oh my god. Is he still breathing?" she asked fearfully.

"Yeah," Lacey said, "He's just really, really drunk." As if to confirm that assertion, Danny parted his lids, grunted out something unintelligible and then proceeded to pass out again. Lacey tipped a longsuffering look up at Jo. "We need to sober him up."

Jo kicked lightly at one of the empty bottles with a repulsed grimace. "How much did he drink?"

"I don't know...at least two six packs maybe. He smells like a brewery." Lacey smacked his cheeks several times until his eyes rolled open once more. "Danny, you have to wake up. We need to get you upstairs and you're too heavy for Jo and me to carry."

"...didn't kill her..." he slurred out mournfully, "I didn't do it. I tried to help her...really did...but couldn't...he was too strong...sorry...I'm so sorry..."

"I know you didn't kill Regina," Lacey reassured him, "That's not important right now. You need to help me and Jo get you upstairs."

"Can't do it..." he mumbled, his head lolling yet again, "...too tired...maybe tomorrow..."

Frustrated, Lacey beckoned Jo closer and then looped one of Danny's arms around her shoulder. "Get on his other side," she instructed, "and help me get him to his feet."

Jo balked at the suggestion. "Lacey, I know that Danny's a pretty slim guy and everything but there's no way in hell the two of us are going to be able to carry his dead weight up the steps!"

"We're not going upstairs," Lacey said, "We need to get him into their downstairs guest shower and sober him up first."

After several minutes of pushing, pulling, tugging, grunting and nearly dropping him twice, Jo and Lacey finally managed to hoist an inebriated and mostly uncooperative Danny into the large, jetted tub. They slumped against one another in breathless exertion. When she finished getting her second wind, Jo appraised Lacey with a questioning, sideways glance. "Now what?" Lacey answered with action. Her pretty features set in stony resolve, she reached forward and deliberately switched the shower tap on to cold.

Danny didn't respond right away. At first, he remained slouched in the bathtub, mostly impervious to the frigid water that beat down on his head. And then, without fanfare or warning, he reanimated like some creature rising from the deep, half rising from the tub with a string of sputtered, drunken curses. Jo kept him from getting to his feet, which wasn't exactly difficult given the slippery tub and his lack of coordination, while Lacey shut off the water. Once he was no longer being drenched, Danny glared up at Jo and Lacey in bleary confusion.

"What the hell?" he demanded fuzzily, "Why am I wet?"

"We found you passed out in the living room," Jo informed him, "What were you thinking? What idiot sold you alcohol last night?"

"Doesn't matter," he slurred, his heavy lidded stare falling on Lacey as he spoke, "Leave me alone. I'm fine. You can go now. I don't need you here."

He made a move to fling his leg over the edge, as if he meant to roll from the bathtub and, the instant he did, he got sick. Danny lurched over the edge just in time to empty the soured contents of his stomach on the bathroom floor. Jo moved out of the line of fire with lightning quick precision, barely missing the splash back. She looked away, gagging at the horrid retching sounds he made as he threw up again and again and again.

"And the toilet was right there," she lamented mournfully.

Lacey watched the graphic scene unfold with a shudder of distaste. "I don't understand how anyone gets drunk on purpose. This looks and sounds terrible."

"Well, I'm not cleaning this up," Jo announced flatly, "He's _your_ boyfriend. You get dibs."

"He's my _ex_. We broke up, remember?"

She tapped Lacey's shoulder in objection. "Semantics. It's only been a day and, besides that, everybody knows the first breakup after a betrayal never takes. This is all you, Lacey Porter."

Jo was as good as her word. She busied herself with tidying up the mess Danny had made outside of the bathroom while Lacey contended with him and the disgusting disaster he'd created within it. With her jaw set and her shoulders squared, Lacey figuratively rolled up her sleeves and got to work, first mopping up the mess he'd made on the floor and then tackling the mess he'd made of himself. Close to an hour later she had the bathroom scrubbed and disinfected and Danny mostly clean and stripped of his soiled clothing. Jo volunteered to wash the piles of dirty laundry while Lacey lugged Danny upstairs to his bedroom in nothing but his soaked underwear and socks and deposited him rather unceremoniously onto his bed. He hit the mattress with an unforgiving thud.

Danny angled a displeased scowl up at Lacey. "Y...You're m...mean as h...hell," he informed her through chattering teeth.

"You deserve it," she tossed back flatly.

He made a blind grope for the bed sheets that were bunched beneath him, shivering uncontrollably. "I'm...s...so...c...cold."

Lacey staved off his efforts to wrap himself in a blanket. "Not yet," she admonished him, "I need to get you in some dry clothes first."

With an almost clinical detachment, Lacey went about the business of peeling off his drenched boxers and socks. She briskly dried his nude body with the towel she had brought with her from the downstairs bathroom, beginning with his hair before working her way down the length of his torso and legs and back again. Once he was completely dry, she wrapped him securely beneath the blankets. He moaned his contentment, snagging hold of her wrist in a surprisingly strong grip when she started to move away from the bed. Lacey bounced her startled glance to his face.

"Thank you, Lace," he whispered, "I'm sorry. I know you hate me."

She tugged her arm free of his grasp and straightened. "I don't hate you, Danny...and you're welcome."

"Why'd you come back here?" he mumbled drowsily, "...thought you were done with me..."

"Jo and I thought we would give you a second chance to explain yourself," she told him tersely, "Where's your mother right now?"

"Don't know...still in lock-up, I guess."

"Drinking yourself into stupidity isn't going to help anything, you know?"

"...just wanted to forget for a while...about Tara and my parents...and Regina..." His gaze fell on her in an anguished stare. "...and you..."

"What did you think was going to happen after you lied to me for weeks?" Lacey snapped, "God, Danny! Only _you_ could screw things up so completely and then turn around and act like the freaking victim!"

"Right...you're right...sorry..."

Feeling her hurt and frustration from the previous night rise within her once more, Lacey purposely shifted her focus elsewhere. "Where are your pajamas? You need something to wear."

"Top drawer...I think..."

She turned to filter through his chest for underwear, socks and nightwear only to be brought to a halt when she found the thick bundle of envelopes bound by several rubber bands at the very back of his drawer. Curious over what he'd hidden, Lacey carefully pulled them free, thumbing through the stack in disbelief as she gradually realized she was looking at every letter she and Jo had ever written him while he was away at Huntington. They had all been opened. Judging by the worn quality and dingy color of the envelopes they had also been read more than once. He had kept them all those years in spite of his lack of answer. He had _never_ forgotten them, just like he said he hadn't.

Danny was definitely capable of the truth, she realized. He was just _selective_ about when he chose to tell it. Shaken by her discovery, Lacey put the letters back where she had found them and turned to face Danny again with his clothing bundled against her chest. He was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, snoring softly. Lacey assumed that he had passed out once again but, as she bent down to tug the blanket from his body, his lashes fluttered. He opened his eyes to regard Lacey in befuddled curiosity. She pressed his clothing into the center of his chest.

"Here's something for you to wear. Can you manage to get dressed on your own?"

He regarded her with a lopsided smile. "A little help would be appreciated."

Grunting in growing frustration, Lacey none too gently assisted him into an upright position and then with pulling his t-shirt down over his head. During the process, he occasionally went in and out on her in terms of lucidity. Consequently, the majority of the task for getting him clothed fell on her shoulders. She practically ripped his socks from his hands after he made several unsuccessful attempts to pull them on because he kept falling asleep in the middle of the task and yanked them onto his feet herself without ceremony. But it was when the time came for her to assist him in pulling on his underwear that the situation became truly awkward.

Left with little choice in the matter, Lacey had to straddle Danny's body as she doggedly shimmied his underwear up his legs. He was mostly dead weight, barely able to follow her grunting commands to turn and lift. By the time she finally got his boxers pulled to just beneath his buttocks, a fine sheen of perspiration had broken out all over her. She dropped her head forward in weary exhaustion only to yank it back up a split second later when her eyes landed directly on his flaccid genitals.

"I can't believe this is happening to me," she muttered in deprecation. She blew a fallen tendril of hair from her eyes and then sat back on his thighs, glaring down at him in aggravation. "I need you to lift your hips." When he didn't respond, she shook him briskly. "Damn it, Danny, lift your freaking hips!" He finally did as she commanded and, the instant he did, Lacey regretted it. In following her terse instructions, Danny inadvertently brushed against her wrist as he rolled and shifted and that small bit of friction against his sensitive flesh was enough to coax his sleeping penis into thumping arousal.

Lacey raised her mortified gaze, not extremely surprised to find Danny watching her with half mast eyes. "What are you doing?" he slurred in a loud, stage whisper.

"Trying to put on your underwear," she said.

He lifted his head to direct a brief glance down at his groin. "I'm hard." The statement was half accusation, half observation. Lacey might have laughed if she wasn't so thoroughly mortified.

"I know," she managed with stunning poise, "It wasn't on purpose."

Danny flopped back against the bed. "...mmm...kay."

"Do you think you could you raise your hips for me, please?" The moment he complied, Lacey quickly dragged his boxers up to his waist. Danny hissed softly as the elastic band scraped across his erection. "Sorry..." Lacey mumbled.

"...it's okay." She started to roll away from him but he covered her thighs with his hands, thwarting her efforts to put distance between them. Their eyes met in another penetrating stare. He nudged her with his hips, making his desire for her plainly clear. "Don't move...stay here with me..."

And that was how Jo found them, Lacey straddling a half naked Danny while he framed her hips with his hands. She squeaked, alerting Lacey and Danny to her presence. Lacey scrambled off of the bed as if she'd just been electrocuted. She couldn't meet Jo's eyes at all while Danny remained mostly sleepy and confused over everything.

"I was just going to tell you that I finished cleaning up downstairs," Jo rushed out, "but I can see you're busy." She wagged her finger in a gesture of superiority. "See? I told you. The first breakup _never_ takes. I'm gonna go now."

Jo was gone before Lacey could even begin to explain away the scene. She turned back to regard Danny in frustrated anger. "Are you happy?" she hissed, "Now she has the wrong idea about us!"

"Does she?"

"Nothing is going to happen between us, Danny!"

"I know you're mad," he acknowledged in an unfocused mumble, "And you should be mad but, I miss you so much, baby, and it's only been a day. _One day_. What am I gonna do without you, Lace?"

"Maybe you should have thought of that before you lied," she retorted softly.

"I guess I should have," he agreed, "Still don't wanna break up though."

"Well, I do, damn it," Lacey insisted with a resolute glower, "I meant every word I said to you last night, Danny. We're through. You broke my trust and I can't forgive that."

"If that's true..." Danny slurred as he drifted off into unconsciousness yet again, "...then why are you here right now?"

It was a very good question and, unfortunately, one to which Lacey did not have an immediate answer.


	23. Chapter Twenty Two

**Chapter Twenty Two**

Hangovers generally sucked.

Although Danny felt markedly better than he had when his mother arrived home in early evening the day before, he still felt a bit queasy and his light sensitivity remained. He had awakened shortly before his mother's arrival, alone in his bed in nothing but a t-shirt, boxers and socks with slightly damp hair and no recollection of how he'd gotten upstairs in the first place. His last coherent memory had been of cracking open his seventh beer of the night. He had a vague recollection of Lacey and Jo dumping him into a tub of cold water but when he had gone downstairs to inspect the house, which was meticulously spotless, he'd found no trace of them. Less than fifteen minutes after that, his mother returned home.

It turned out that she had never been formally charged with any crime. Kyle Masterson had interrogated her and held he as long as he was legally able but the moment his mother had asked for a lawyer, the chief of police had been forced to release her. Kyle Masterson had absolutely no concrete evidence to connect the necklace Karen had tossed with the necklace that had been stolen from Regina Crane. Once she had become aware of that fact, Karen had claimed that she'd gotten rid of Tara's necklace due to its similarity to Regina Crane's and her fear that it would be used to make Danny look guilty. After her lawyer succinctly pointed out to Chief Masterson that the only crime he could legally charge Karen Desai for would possibly be littering, she had been released without further incident.

That turn of events hadn't been enough to mollify Danny, however. He knew that it would only be a matter of time before Kyle Masterson darkened their doorstep yet again. He was going to keep pushing until he finally sent Danny back to prison. As a result of that knowledge, Danny was insistent on confessing what he knew, not wanting his mother to bear any more harassment due to his actions. Karen had been resistant to that idea, advising him to remain calm and to let matters play out. When she learned that he had told Lacey, Jo and Rico the truth about that night and that they had pretty much rejected him afterwards, Karen had been dismayed but remained resolute.

"Let's see what they do first," she had urged Danny, "And then we'll decide if there's a need to do damage control."

Consequently, Danny began the following school day filled with dread and feeling physically ill at the prospect of facing Lacey, Jo and Rico again. He mentally prepared himself for the inevitable moment when Kyle Masterson came after him again. Hopefully, he would wait until the end of the school day. Danny simply wanted to get through his classes without enduring yet another humiliating arrest before his peers.

His plan was to lie low, get through the day as best he could and then return home without incident if he could. It was a simple goal. Unfortunately, it was one not easily executed because he hadn't been at his locker a full two seconds before Archie Yates made his approach. Danny leaned into the metal door with a heavy groan.

"What do you want, Archie?"

"You look like crap, Desai," Archie spat, "Are you going to be able to perform on the field today or are you just going to waste everybody's time?"

Danny surveyed him with a puzzled, sideways squint. "The field?"

"We have practice today or did you forget now that you got what you wanted?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't think I don't know the real reason you joined the team."

"And what's the real reason?"

"You wanted to stick it to me," Archie bit out, "You wanted to rub it in my face that Lacey chose you."

Danny scoffed a weary laugh. "You give yourself way too much credit, my friend."

Archie shoved him, his features drawn in a feral snarl. "I'm not your friend, scumbag!"

For the most part, Danny was able to maintain his cool in spite of the increased pounding in his head that came with Archie's unprovoked attack. "Look, I'm going to let that slide because I know it's hard to watch your girl move on with another guy _but_...don't ever put your hands on me again."

"Or you'll what?" Archie challenged, dispensing yet another hard shove.

They were beginning to draw a crowd, which only egged on Archie's belligerence and hastened Danny's rapidly dwindling patience. He pushed his hair back from his eyes and glared at Archie darkly. "I'm going to give you another chance to walk away," he warned, "and then we can pretend this whole thing never happened."

"Screw you, Desai!"

The instant Archie took a swing at him, Danny was ready. He ducked the blow and landed a smooth punch to Archie's midsection all in one fluid motion. The taller boy doubled over. The crowd surrounding them emitted a low "oooh." Spurred on by his pride, Archie charged at Danny with a menacing growl. His fist clanged into the face of the lockers as Danny nimbly escaped his second punch and landed two successive blows to Archie's lower back. He groaned and his knees buckled a bit.

"You had enough, Archie?" Danny taunted, "Or do you want me to finish it?"

With an enraged roar, Archie launched himself at Danny once more. The two boys grappled with each other for dominance, slamming haplessly into lockers and spectators alike. They fell to the floor together in a hazy blur of flying fists. By the time they were finally pulled apart Danny had a split and bloodied lower lip and Archie had two black eyes.

Twenty minutes later, Danny was seated outside the principal's office brooding and holding an ice pack to his swollen lip. Presently, his mother was pleading with Principal Tang not to expel him from school. While Danny waited to learn his fate on that score the last thing he expected was for Rico to come plop down in the empty chair next to him. But, that was exactly what he did. Danny did a doubletake, as if he couldn't quite believe his eyes. Rico, on the other hand, remained mostly nonchalant.

"I see you're living up to your delinquent persona."

Danny blinked at him incredulously. "Excuse me?"

"So did they kick you out?" Rico asked him.

"Not yet," Danny answered warily, "Is there a particular reason you're here right now, Rico?"

"You didn't kill Regina Crane," Rico declared without preamble, "I thought that maybe it was a possibility at first given your general shadiness but, after a careful review of all we've learned in the past few weeks, I realized that there are much likelier suspects with more motive than you."

"Um...thanks, I guess."

"The point is, you didn't kill Regina Crane but, somebody did. That mystery still needs to be solved."

"How does that concern you?" Danny asked tersely, "I thought you were done with me."

Rico cocked his head slightly. "Has no one ever explained the concept of friendship to you? You're supposed to be grateful for the support we provide you not give us reasons to hate you."

"What are you talking about?"

"So I don't know you as well as Jo," Rico said, "She picks things up a lot faster than I do but I'm all about critical thinking and your 'confession' the other night was way too convenient."

"Everything I told you was absolutely true."

"I'm sure it was."

"Which means I've been lying to all of you for a very long time," Danny reminded him.

"I'm aware of that as well. Don't get me wrong. That's a problem. You should definitely stop doing it."

Danny squinted at him in mounting skepticism. "What is this? Why are you here right now, Rico?"

"Jo believes in you, Danny," Rico said, "and I believe in her. I also believe in myself and I have good instincts... _most_ of the time. I'm a very good judge of character and I'm not usually wrong about people. I don't think I'm wrong about you either."

"That's not how you felt the other night. You were more than ready to write me off."

"Wasn't that exactly what you _wanted_ us to do?" Rico countered knowingly. While Danny absorbed the news that his friends hadn't quite fallen for his manipulative tactics after all, Rico said, "Meet us at the fort after school. We need to discuss our next move in the Regina situation."

Danny regarded him with a blank look. "Us?"

"Yeah...you, me, Jo _and_ Lacey."

By some miracle, Danny escaped being expelled. But he was sure, if he had been, he likely wouldn't have had too much reaction. He was still trying to wrap his mind around the idea that Lacey, Jo and Rico were expecting him at the fort after school. Danny couldn't figure out how that had happened when, the last time he had seen any of them, they had all made it abundantly clear to him that they were done. Still, in spite of his understandable preoccupation, it was nice not to have to add an expulsion to his growing list of worries.

Apparently, several anonymous witnesses had come forward on his behalf to confirm that Archie had been the one to instigate the fight. Their testimony kept him from getting kicked out of school but it hadn't saved him from receiving a two day suspension from Coach Kenner. According to the coach, he and Archie were teammates and they needed to act accordingly. If they couldn't do that then they might very well find themselves without a team. Coach Kenner's last words to him before he shuffled out of his office were, "Find a way to work it out."

Danny was putting away his gear in the locker room, wracking his brain for a way to do that when Archie abruptly entered. He stopped in his tracks when he spotted Danny while Danny winced at the sight of Archie's bruised and swollen face. It was his first time seeing the extent of the damage he'd inflicted.

"Dude, I'm sorry," he grunted in genuine remorse, "No hard feelings. Okay?"

"Don't bother," Archie snorted, heading over to his locker to put away his gear, "I'll live." He threw his gym bag into his locker and then slammed the door before pivoting to face Danny with a deep scowl. "You know, I hope you're happy! Coach handed me a four day suspension. He said if I couldn't find a way to make peace with you, that he was going to replace me as captain like _I'm_ the freaking problem!" He leveled Danny with a contemptuous once-over. "You ruin everything you touch, don't you, Desai?"

"Excuse me...what? I ruin things?" Danny scoffed, " _You_ were the one who came after _me_! I tried to walk away but you pushed it!"

"No, you didn't. Going after my girl isn't walking away from anything!"

Danny repressed his guilty flinch, his bristling anger dissolving as quickly as it had sparked. "I didn't steal Lacey from you."

"Like hell you didn't! You've been after her since the first day you came back here!"

"There was something between me and Lacey long before you came into the picture...a lot of things that were unresolved. I'm sorry if you got caught in the middle of that."

"If you start spouting off some 'meant to be' crap to me I swear to god I'm going to punch your freaking face in!" Archie grated bitterly.

"What do you want me to say, Archie?"

"Just admit what you are, Desai," he bit out, "You might have everybody else fooled but I see right through you! You invade my school. You terrorize my classmates, probably killed one of them too. You stole my girlfriend. And now you're trying to steal my place on my team. Somehow, despite everything you've done, you keep on winning."

Danny barked a short laugh. "You obviously don't know me very well if you think I'm 'winning' anything."

"Just watch your back, freak," Archie warned, "You want to try to ruin me? Just know that I can give as good as I get."

By the time Danny began making his way to the fort after the final bell had rung, his head was pounding anew. Clearly, it wasn't in the cards for him to catch a break. Archie and his baseless vendetta against him was the last thing Danny needed on top of everything else. He supposed the guy had just cause to hate him, though it struck Danny as ironic since the girl at the center of all that animosity had dumped him too. Still, he understood and sympathized with the source of Archie's fury. What he _couldn't_ understand was why Archie seemed to believe that it was on purpose, as if Danny was deliberately going about the business of systematically ruining his life. The whole thing was absurd!

He was still smarting about the entire thing when he reached the fort. Before entering, he paused for a brief instant, mentally preparing himself for whatever he might find inside and then entered. Just as Rico had promised, he, Jo and Lacey all sat inside, apparently waiting for him. Even though that had been the expectation, Danny felt stunned by their presence nonetheless. He froze in his tracks. Jo was the first one to speak.

"Oh wow, what did Archie do to your face?" she demanded with a low whistle, "You're all bruised up. Does it hurt?"

Danny shrugged, tentatively running his tongue across the swollen portion of his lower lip. "It's okay."

Lacey was the next to speak, drawing Danny's penetrating gaze when she did. "Archie looks worse," she murmured, "Trust me." She regarded Danny with a shuttered look. "So did you get kicked out?"

"Nope. Neither did Archie," he added tightly, "if you're concerned about that."

"I already know he didn't."

For some reason, the idea that she might have seen or spoken with Archie Yates some time during the day only doubled Danny's aggravation and worsened his headache. As a result, the next time he spoke his words were clipped and edged with short-tempered impatience. "What is all of this anyway? Why did you guys want me here?"

Jo twisted around to retrieve the metal lockbox that belonged to Regina and then set it down in the middle of their circle. "We haven't finished discussing what we're going to do about _that_ ," she said.

Danny's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "How did you get that? You left it at my house."

Lacey regarded him with a curious look, some of her unease with him fading with the possibility that he might not recall the full events from the previous day. "Jo and I came over to your place yesterday," she told him, "We took it with us. Don't you remember?"

"No. Most of yesterday is pretty fuzzy for me."

Jo snorted. "I'm not surprised. You were drunk off your ass."

Following her comment, Rico rushed to throw in, "Just for the record, you might not want to do _that_ again either. It _is_ possible to die from alcohol poisoning. If you're going to drink, you should drink responsibly." He received exasperated looks from both Jo and Lacey. "Just saying," he finished in a self-conscious mumble.

Not yet grasping a full understanding of why they'd called him there, Danny said, "So you came to get the box yesterday. Okay. But that still doesn't explain why you wanted to meet me here."

Jo rolled her eyes. "I realize you're probably still hung-over but, we covered this already. We need to figure out what to do next. I think we're all in agreement that going to my dad is pretty much out at this point. I'd like to be able to go to him but his focus is somewhere else right now."

"He wasn't ever really an option," Danny mumbled.

Lacey nodded her agreement. "So that only leaves one alternative...I guess we have to go check out that address on blackmail note and see what we find."

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Danny burst out, "Hold on a second! I feel like we skipped like ten steps here. The last time I saw you guys it was pretty clear that you'd washed your hands of me. Now you're sitting around strategizing what _our_ next move should be. What's happening here? I don't get it!"

Jo shifted to her feet, nodding her acknowledgement of his argument. "You're right. What you did was pretty crappy. You lied to us, Danny, when all we've wanted this whole time was to help you!"

"I know," he acknowledged in a suffocated tone.

Lacey was the one to voice aloud the question most prevalent in all of their minds. "Then why did you do it? And don't give us some b.s. about it being in your nature or you doing what you needed to do. Be honest with us, Danny! For once! We deserve that. _I_ deserve that."

"I was scared," he admitted gruffly, "I was scared that if I told you what really happened with Regina then you would leave me. And you did."

Jo grunted a protesting laugh with that declaration. "No, we didn't. We're still here, Danny. Yeah, we were pissed and rightly so. But we're your friends and we care about you. We want to help."

Rico nodded his agreement. "But we can't do that if you don't let us," he argued, "You have to be reasonable. How are we supposed to trust you or believe in you when you keep giving us reasons not to do it?"

"I don't know what to say," he replied quietly, "It...it's always been very hard for me to trust people because, in my experience, it's been the people closest to me who have hurt me the most. And I guess I've just come to expect it and I don't know how to get out of that mindset."

Jo regarded him with a softened expression. "Well, you need to work on it, Desai."

The realization that they were actually willing to forgive him left Danny humbled and completely without defenses. He dropped his head forward, fearful that he might actually burst into tears right then. "I don't understand why you guys are doing this," he muttered hoarsely.

Rico angled a look up at Jo. "He really doesn't get how this friendship concept works."

"It's simple, Danny," she told him, "We promised you that we'd stick with you and we will. But you have to be honest with us from here on out. No more lies or we'll walk and we won't look back."

"Okay," he replied with a bobbing nod of acceptance, "Then you should probably know that I didn't actually take Regina's necklace the night I went to her house. She was still wearing it when I left that morning." Three stunned pairs of eyes bounced to his face. "I found it in my locker with a note that said, 'This belongs to you.'"

"What?" the three of them burst out simultaneously.

They started firing questions at him in tandem, making it impossible for Danny to focus on just one. It took several tries but he was finally able to get a word in over the melee. "I don't know who put it there or why," he said, "I have my theories about it and so does my mom."

Lacey surveyed him with a penetrating stare. "So your mom definitely knows everything that's going on? You told her?"

"I didn't have much of a choice. She found the necklace the day I joined the soccer team...when you and I were together."

The softly spoken reminder of that day and what they had done together had Lacey averting her eyes. "So that's the reason she decided to watch you so closely after," she concluded tightly.

"Yeah..."

Jo dragged a hand through her messy mop of hair, still processing Danny's latest bombshell. "So you're saying that someone _stole_ Regina's necklace and then put it in your locker? Is there anything else?"

"My mom thinks it was your dad," Danny informed her flatly.

For a second time in less than five minutes, a small turn of pandemonium broke out. "What?" the three cried out incredulously once again. Jo shook her head in dismissal of the theory altogether. "No! That's crazy! My dad would never do something like that. He can be single-minded and arbitrary but he wouldn't deliberately set you up!"

"That's what I told my mom but, she wants me to consider all the angles."

Rico tapped his chin thoughtfully. "And what's another angle?"

"That the killer did it."

Lacey blinked at him, her fear over the theory compelling her to dismiss it. "Danny, that's a stretch, don't you think?"

He shook his head. "That night I went to Regina's and I struggled with her killer there was this moment when he stopped and looked directly at me and I could swear...I could swear that he recognized me." Rico, Jo and Lacey released a collective gasp. "It was eerie. I haven't been able to shake it since."

Rico rocked back and forth on his perch in mounting dismay. "Okay well, this just gets creepier and creepier. Are we sure we shouldn't reconsider going to the cops?"

"That's definitely out," Jo said, "My dad has his mind set on Danny being guilty. He's not going to consider any other possibility unless we can go to him with stone, cold facts."

"That box full of money isn't enough?" Rico burst out.

"No," Jo replied, "We're going to need more."

Lacey cut a questioning glance towards Jo. She felt Rico's same unease but she also knew if they didn't do something soon Danny might very well go back to prison for a murder he didn't commit. "So when do you want to leave?"

"That's up to Danny."

Three pairs of expectant eyes settled on him once more. "Tonight," he said, "The sooner we can get some answers, the sooner my life will start to make sense again."

"Wait a minute," Rico protested, "I just thought of something. The apartment is in Newport, Connecticut. Won't you be violating your probation if you leave the state?"

"Rico, I've probably violated my probation about a dozen times since I've been out," Danny replied dryly, "At this point, what's one more time? We'll leave tonight just like we said."

"Deal," Jo agreed, "We'll go home and get some supplies together and put our cover stories in place. We'll meet up again say around 6 o'clock." Lacey emitted a low groan of consternation. At the sound, Jo swiveled around to face her. "What's wrong?"

"I promised my mom that I was done sneaking around," Lacey said, "I don't want to lie to her."

"You won't be lying," Jo replied, "Just tell her you're spending the night with me. That's the truth."

"And who am I spending the night with?" Rico wanted to know as he came to his feet.

Jo looped her arm around his shoulder and began leading him from the fort. "You, my friend, are going to do something that you've _never_ done before. It's called 'sneaking out.' Let me explain to you how the concept works..."

As Jo explained to Rico the finer details of making a late night escape from home undetected, Danny and Lacey were left alone in the fort. Both suspected that Jo's actions had been deliberate in that regard but did not comment on it. They carefully avoided one another's eyes for the first few minutes, an awkward silence swelling between them.

Finally, Danny cleared his throat. "I...um...guess I should thank you, huh?"

"For what?"

"For cleaning up my mess and getting me into bed," he clarified softly, "I'm assuming that was you."

"Me _and_ Jo," Lacey corrected with equal softness.

"Okay. Well, regardless I..."

As he started to say more, Lacey surged to her feet abruptly with the clear intention of leaving. "I should go," she said, "I'm their ride home, so..."

When she started to scoot past him to make her escape, he couldn't stop himself from reaching out to snag hold of her forearm. "Lacey, wait... _please_?" She didn't make any further moves to leave but she also wouldn't meet his eyes either. "Can't you even look at me?"

She tugged her arm from his grasp and met his eyes in a defiant glare. "Happy?"

"I know I screwed up with you," he acknowledged in a trembling whisper, "I get that you're pissed off, but... I don't want you to give up on me. Please don't do that. I need you."

"I'm not giving up on you. I'm here, aren't I?"

"You know what I mean."

Lacey fidgeted under his beseeching stare. "Danny, listen, I'll be here for you. I'll support you in any way that I can but... _as a friend_. That's it."

"There's more than friendship between us, Lace, and you know it."

"Yeah, I thought that too," she bit out angrily, "And then I found out you were keeping all of these secrets from me and that changed my perspective on things!"

"Because I didn't want to lose you," he argued.

"Because you didn't _trust_ me!" she fired back, "There can't be a relationship where there isn't any trust!" Without warning, her anger dissipated leaving her weary and heartsick. She slumped forward with a shuddering intake of breath. "Danny, I thought we had something real and deep...that we were connecting in this incredible way. It wasn't just sex for me."

"It wasn't just sex for me either."

She pinned him with an accusing stare glistening with emotion. "I gave you every part of me. I didn't hold anything back. Can you say the same?"

"I gave you everything I could," he told her, "and that's more than I've ever given anybody."

Lacey took a resolute step backwards, her expression becoming remote. "I know that's true and I wish that could enough for me but, it's not. It's all or nothing. I want every part of you, Danny, not just the bits and pieces you choose to reveal. I can't be with you otherwise. Neither of us should have to compromise ourselves to make a relationship work. You're obviously not in a place to give me what I want so... Maybe we would be better off as friends."

"No, we wouldn't! That's an absolute joke, Lacey!"

"It's what I want," she insisted.

Danny reacted as if she'd physically slapped him. It felt like she had. He whipped her with a wounded look. "What you want?" he echoed thickly, "So that's it? You're really done?"

She dropped her eyes when she whispered, "Yes. I'm really done."

"Oh...okay..." he said, feeling as if he'd been kicked in the chest.

"I think it would be easier...for both of us."

"Right...yeah...okay. If that's what you really want."

"Yep. That's what I _really_ want." Lacey turned to leave. "Okay then. I'll see you tonight."

"Yeah. See ya." He turned to watch her leave, unable to fathom how he would ever be content with merely being her friend.


	24. Chapter Twenty Three

**Chapter Twenty Three**

As Danny came down the walk towards the car, Jo started to climb from the passenger's side in order to give him her seat but he shook his head in terse protest. "Stay where you are," he told her, "I'll take the back."

Lacey popped the trunk so that he could put his bag away while Jo settled back into her seat with a woeful groan. She appraised Lacey with a pointed, sideways glare. "I thought you guys were working things out," she hissed through her teeth.

"We did," Lacey hissed back, "We decided we're better off as friends."

Jo had just finished crowing her abundant cynicism that such a thing could be accomplished when Danny threw himself into the backseat. He glared at the back of Lacey's head. She glared back at him in the rearview mirror. "Alright," he clipped impatiently, "Let's get this show on the road."

Expelling yet another longsuffering groan, Jo rolled an exasperated glance between her two friends. "Are you guys really going to mean mug at each other the entire trip?"

Rico whimpered at the prospect. "Please say you won't. In extremely tense situations, I tend to break out in hives and I didn't pack any Benadryl so...could you two possibly make up already?"

"I'm not tense," Lacey announced airily, the stiffness in her shoulders starkly incongruent with her words, "Danny, are you tense?"

He flicked her with a steely glance that belied his next words. "Totally not tense."

Jo flopped back into her seat with an aggravated huff. "Ugh! You guys drive me crazy!"

Lacey responded to her grumbling with a demure sigh. "Okay, so why don't we change the subject then?" she suggested smoothly, "Have we come up with a plan for what we're going to do once we get to the apartment?"

Rico leaned forward and poked his head in between the seats. "I think having a plan is a great idea. Thank God, somebody brought it up."

Jo sniffed in disinterest. "What's wrong with winging it?"

That statement earned her an incredulous scowl from Rico. "We're going to the home of a potential killer, Jo," he declared in a dire tone, "'Winging it' should not even be a consideration in this particular situation! We need a plan A, a plan B and C and D. And just to be safe, possibly a Plan E."

With a jaunty, half smile, Jo reached over to give Rico's head a sad, little pat. "No one makes plan E's, Rico. You're cute though."

" _I_ make Plan E's," Lacey mumbled in mild affront.

"Yeah," Danny answered softly from the backseat, "I remember that about you. I always liked that."

Their eyes collided in a meaningful stare in the rearview mirror. Lacey was the first to look away. "You've been quiet this whole time," she remarked, "What do you think we should do?"

"I thought we would start by knocking," he replied, garnering a wealth of eye rolls from his friends, "and then, if it turns out that no one is home, I have a back-up plan." He held up a small, black canvas case.

Jo fixed him with a curious look. "What is that?"

"It's a lock picking kit," Danny said, "I got it up from an old buddy of mine. He gave me a few pointers."

Rico leaned back in his seat, his lips pursed in suspicion. "When you say 'old buddy' are you speaking in the ex-convict kind of way or the my good friend who happens to be an escape artist kind of way?"

"It's someone I knew from juvie," Danny clarified flatly.

Lacey speared him with an accusing look, her smooth forehead knit in a pensive frown. "I thought you told me that you didn't hang around those guys anymore."

"No, I said I didn't keep in touch but, I knew where to find them if I needed them," he countered, "And I needed him. He did me a solid. How else did you think we were going to get into that apartment?"

Rico's eyes became as wide as saucers. "Wait. Are...are we talking about committing a felony here?"

"It's only a felony if we enter with the intent to burglarize the place," Danny said, "We're not going to take anything."

Jo blinked at him in a mixture of uneasiness and interest. "Why does your knowledge of this both frighten and intrigue me, Desai?" she asked wryly.

"That's because you're thinking of all the wonderful potential, Masterson. Oh, the mischief you and I could make together."

Ever the voice of reason, Lacey sighed, "Need I remind you both...Danny, you're an ex-felon. Jo, you're the daughter of a cop. There are so many reasons why whatever scheme you guys are planning to cook up is _not_ a good thing."

Rico huffed in assent, "Agreed. Our youth shouldn't be used as a ready excuse for delinquency."

Jo slouched back into her seat with a dramatic pout. "Gah, now there are _two_ of you. Killjoys."

"And on that note," Lacey began with artificial brightness, "Let's get this train wreck started."

Lacey had estimated the trip to Newport, Connecticut, where the mysterious apartment was located, would take them roughly three and half hours. She had been prepared for awkwardness given the situation between herself and Danny. However, she had banked on Jo and Rico serving as much needed buffers for, at least, the majority of the trip. In theory, she shouldn't have to make painful small talk with Danny until possibly the last leg of their journey. Lacey hadn't anticipated that both Jo _and_ Rico would be zonked out within the first hour.

She rolled a woebegone look over at a slumbering Jo. "Thanks for nothing, friend," she muttered under her breath.

"What did you expect?" Danny wondered aloud, having discerned the source of her irritation, "You know how she gets on road trips. Remember when my dad took us to Cedar Pointe that summer? She was asleep within twenty minutes. Long car rides are like a natural sedative to her."

"Oh yeah..." Lacey murmured, "I'd forgotten about that."

"That's understandable. It's been a while since we've gone on a road trip together. I think that was the last one."

"Your dad was such a funny guy. He did all those silly impressions the entire trip." Lacey laughed at the recollection. "I can't remember...why didn't your mom come with us again?"

"My parents had developed a deep aversion to each other's company by then." His voice became gruff with sorrow and regret when he added, "Sort of like us."

Lacey's happy smile collapsed with a heavy, disquieted sigh. She locked eyes with him in the mirror. "I don't have an aversion to being in your company, Danny."

"You just don't want to be with me."

"You know why."

He bit his lip and turned his gaze out the window towards the passing terrain. "Yeah, I know. I just happen to think the whole thing sucks."

Lacey started to point out to him that perhaps he should have thought of that _before_ he'd lied to her but she thought better of it. What was the use in laying further blame upon him? He obviously regretted his actions and they were trying to move past it. Besides that, Lacey understood that he hadn't acted out of maliciousness or carelessness. He truly struggled with the concept of relying on others, of trusting those closest to him to shoulder his burdens with him, _for_ him. He was in a constant state of expectation to be disappointed. Lacey could make certain allowances for his inability as his friend but asking her to accept those flaws as his girlfriend was a little too much.

Silence permeated the interior of the car for several, tense minutes before Lacey asked softly, "Why did you keep all those letters from me and Jo?"

The question had been beating around in her brain since she first discovered them hidden away beneath the bundles of his cotton tees and socks. For years, she had harbored so much anger, confusion and hurt over his lack of response. In those very early days, she and Jo had been reeling. They had both been desperate for some sign from him that their instincts about him hadn't been wrong. Even when Danny later explained his reasoning to her, it hadn't completely lessened the pain for what had felt like his rejection. But the knowledge that he had been holding on to them all that time was oddly comforting to Lacey. It was a implicit admission that he had been hurting just as much as she had.

Startled by the question, Danny met her eyes in the mirror once more. "How did you know about that?"

"I found them the other night when I was searching for clean clothes," Lacey explained, "So why do you still have them? Why did you never mention anything about keeping them before?"

"I guess it was my way of holding on to you guys," he replied after a beat, "A reminder that I had a life outside...that there were people who cared about me, even if I didn't deserve it."

"See, that's always been your biggest problem, Danny. You never put any value on yourself whatsoever. You're an amazing person. You just never let yourself believe it."

"If I'm so 'amazing' then why aren't we together?" he challenged.

"Don't do that. Don't try to invalidate what I'm telling you by bringing up our breakup."

"I think it's pretty valid," he retorted, "You tell me in one breath that I should value myself and then in the next breath that you can't be with me because I'm too much of an emotional mess for you."

"You're twisting my words and that's not fair!"

"That's how I feel!"

At that moment, Rico began shifting around in his sleep, quelling them both into momentary silence. Lacey waited until he had settled again before she resumed her argument with Danny. "Did you ever stop to think that maybe I don't want to get my heart broken anymore?" she hissed, "How would you feel if you found out I was keeping all these major, huge secrets from you? Could you just shrug it off?"

"I guess not," he mumbled grudgingly, "But I'd like to think I would give you the benefit of the doubt."

"Lucky for you that you never have to worry about what you would do because _I_ haven't lied to _you_ ," Lacey retorted tartly.

"Point taken."

Rather than further debating the situation with her because he knew they were just going to go round and round in circles, Danny decided to switch tactics and prove a point to her instead. He waited until Rico finished with his latest round of drowsy fidgeting before he spoke again. "So...Lacey...tell me again. Exactly what were you doing digging around in my underwear drawer?" he asked in a purposely provocative tone.

Lacey rolled her eyes. "That's not even a smooth segue, Danny."

He ignored her sarcasm. "It's not meant to be. I'm curious. Were you looking for something in particular?"

Not surprisingly, Lacey flinched in reaction and dropped her eyes. "I told you. I was looking for clean clothes. You had vomited all over yourself."

"Well, that explains why I woke up in only a t-shirt, socks and boxers," he murmured, "So you dressed me, huh, Lace...and, I guess you _undressed_ me too? But the real question was why I woke up with wet hair. I guess you gave me a bath as well. That's going above and beyond the call, don't you think?"

Growing more and more disconcerted by his sexual innuendo, Lacey burst out in strident protest, "It wasn't like that! You had gotten sick all over the place and you were barely conscious. I was just...you know...trying to help you and... It wasn't... What I mean is..." She pinched her eyes shut and growled, frustrated with her inability to form a complete sentence. It didn't help that he was regarding her with a smug, knowing expression either. "It didn't _mean_ anything!" she scoffed lightly, "It was like dressing a newborn baby or something!"

"If you say so."

"Oh, screw you, Danny!" Lacey retorted hotly, "It's not like I've never seen you naked before!"

"Okay, if it's not such a big deal," he whispered, leaning forward so that his lips were mere inches away from her ear, "then why are you so flustered right now?"

Lacey tightened her jaw. "I'm not flustered."

"You seem like it."

Each word he spoke caused his breath to stir warmly against her skin. He nuzzled his nose lightly along the delicate edge of her ear. Lacey swatted him away. "Do you have to be so close?" she snapped in irritation, "You're invading my personal space and I don't like it."

"Since when?"

"Since now!" She ducked away from him. "You're in my bubble, damn it!"

That managed to wring a wry laugh from him. "Your bubble? What is that?"

"I have my space," Lacey clarified, bringing up her hand to shove his face away, "and you have yours."

"And obviously having me close still affects you." Danny reclined back in his seat with a satisfied smirk. "Yeah, I can see this whole _friendship_ thing between us is going to work out really well."

He was irritated by her stubborn resolve especially when it was abundantly clear to him that her feelings for him hadn't changed at all. The fact that she remained so adamant about staying apart almost felt like punishment to Danny. It wasn't as if he hadn't learned from his mistakes. He wasn't completely unaware. He knew he had messed up in major fashion and, inadvertently, made her feel devalued in their relationship because of it. He had given her so much less than she deserved and she had every reason in the world to be hurt and angry with him.

However, Danny firmly believed that he could undo all the emotional pain he had dealt her if she just granted him half a chance to do it. With a little time and patience from her, he could become all of the things she needed him to be. Yet, as soon as the thought occurred to Danny, he recognized how selfish and unfair he was being. He couldn't expect for Lacey to stay with him and continue risking her heart when he was still so reluctant to risk _his_. That was the whole reason they had landed in such a mess to begin with...because, just as Lacey had accused him earlier, he could only give her bits and pieces of himself right now.

There were still so many secrets that he had yet to tell, deep seeded truths that he wasn't sure he would ever share with anyone at all. Lacey had made her needs abundantly clear. She wanted all or nothing. She couldn't be held at fault because he hadn't yet reached a point where he could give that. With a deep sigh of regret, Danny murmured his apologies.

Lacey flashed him a surprised frown. "Why are you suddenly apologizing to me?"

"Because you deserve one."

"For what?"

"Because I've been an ass to you about this whole breakup and none of it is your fault," he said, "It's mine. You have every right to feel like you do after everything that has happened and I shouldn't have treated you like you were doing something wrong. I promise I won't give you a hard time about it anymore. If all I can have from you is friendship, then I guess that will have to be enough. I won't push you for anything else."

She swallowed thickly when he was finished speaking. "Thank you, Danny. I appreciate that."

Rico chose that moment to give up all pretense at sleep and shift around in his seat with a thankful huff, finally able to give into his undeniable need to scratch vigorously. He rubbed his back against the seat in a futile effort to gain some relief. "Yeah, thank you, Danny," he reiterated, "I appreciate it too. I didn't think I would be able to stand the tension between you guys a second longer. I've got hives all over my back right now."

After they stopped briefly to make an emergency run for Benadryl and Rico had guzzled a fourth of the bottle, the group continued on their way. It wasn't long before Rico gave into the drowsy effect the medicine caused and, once again, fell asleep. With some of the tension between him and Lacey lessened and after two days of nonstop angst, Danny found himself giving into exhaustion as well. Before long, he and Rico were slumped down together in the backseat, the tops of their dark heads just barely touching as they slumbered. Jo swiveled around in her seat to study them both, her lips quirking in a fond smile.

"Aww, they look just like a little ball of kittens," she laughed, "It would be a shame if someone captured this on camera and used it for blackmail." Jo pulled her phone from her back pocket then and remorselessly snapped several pictures which elicited several barely suppressed giggles from Lacey. "These may come in handy later." As she secured her cell phone, Jo cocked her head to one side, inexplicably struck with a thread of fascination for a sleeping Rico. "You know, I never realized how long thick Rico's eyelashes were before. They're almost like a girl's." Her smile softened as she continued to regard him. "He's actually pretty adorable when he's like this."

"No comment," Lacey mumbled wryly.

Jo shifted around to appraise Lacey with puzzled look. "What's that supposed to mean? You don't think he's adorable?"

"Are you kidding? Rico's extremely cute. I'm surprised it took you this long to notice, Jo."

"I've noticed," Jo protested, tucking an errant strand of hair behind her ear, "I'm not blind. He has a nice face. It's impossible not to notice the face but, well, it's not this big deal or anything because...well, he's Rico. He's one of my best friends. I won't let myself go there."

"So it's not that you don't want to but that you're afraid to?" Lacey pressed.

"No. It's because Rico and I have this great, uncomplicated thing. He's been my rock and he means too much to me to ruin what we have with some stupid decision to hook up or whatever."

"Who says it would only be hooking up?"

Jo dragged both hands down her face in growing exasperation. "Lacey, no. Don't go there."

"Why not? You seemed to think it was a great idea for me and Danny and look where that led."

"Actually, drawing attention to that particular fact isn't really helping your argument at the moment," Jo replied in a dry tone, "Besides, you and Danny are different."

"How's that?"

"You guys have that whole 'meant to be' angle going on. Rico and I are soulmates but in a completely different way. He's the yang to my yin."

"Yeah, that's doesn't sound romantic at all," Lacey quipped sardonically.

"Actually, if you know the etiology of both words, it's not," Jo argued, "Yin is typically associated with darkness and gloom and yang is associated with light and energy. That's what Rico did for me and still does...he brought light and energy back into my gloomy world. He saved me."

"That is probably the most beautiful thing I've ever heard you say, Jo Masterson, and it really isn't helping _your_ argument," Lacey replied, deliberately turning Jo's earlier statement back on her.

"You're trying to create romance where there is only deep respect, loyalty and platonic love, Lacey. Grow up, okay. What I share with Rico transcends adolescent crushes."

"And that's it? There's nothing else between you?"

"Yeah. What else could there be?"

Lacey grinned, shaking her head in mild amusement. "You really have no clue, do you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Rico has the biggest crush on you, Jo." She giggled when Jo's mouth fell open. "So much for 'transcending' adolescence or whatever the hell you just said."

Jo drew herself up with a laughing snort. "He does not!"

"He's got it for you so bad. You should see the way he looks at you when you're not paying attention. It's like you hung the moon."

"That sounds familiar...like maybe how _Danny_ looks at _you_."

"We're not talking about Danny and me right now," Lacey countered dryly, "We're talking about you and Rico."

"There is no me and Rico."

Lacey favored her with a brief, but meaningful glance. "Well...there could be if you wanted it. Have you ever thought about it before?"

Jo was saved from having to contemplate an answer to that question because moments later Lacey came up on their exit. While she jostled the boys awake and informed them of their arrival in Newport, Lacey carefully followed the directions she had mapquested earlier that day. As she drove through the surrounding neighborhoods, she began to grow a bit uneasy when she took note of the great, sprawling homes they passed along the way. It became readily apparent that they were entering a very affluent community. Whomever Regina had been blackmailing obviously had an abundance of money. Hence the draw for the blackmail, Lacey supposed.

However, when she started to drive down the long, winding driveway towards the heavy, wrought iron gate with its security intercom and the sleekly, modern high-rise apartment building located directly behind it, Lacey began to have some serious misgivings about their plan. "You guys, this place is way fancier than I expected," she said, "We can't just walk in there. There are no trespassing signs all over the grounds. What if they won't let us in?"

Danny shrugged, evidently not intimidated by the opulent grounds and expensive security equipment. "We'll just tell them we're here for Apt. 512 B."

Jo nibbled at her fingernail, sharing Lacey's same uncertainty. "But we don't have a name, Danny," she argued, "We have no idea who lives in that apartment at all. What if giving them the number isn't enough?"

Rico chimed in as well. "What if we tried something different and just told them the truth," he suggested, "We tell them that we received a letter from this address with no name and we're trying to find out who sent it. After that, we hope for the best."

"No," Danny replied with an impatient shake of his head, "You guys we _can_ get inside. You just need to act like we belong here." He pointed towards the high-rise. "Confidence and a cool head are the only things we need to get inside that building. Just relax and follow my lead."

Lacey continued to harbor her doubts but, she pulled the car forward and pushed the intercom just as Danny had instructed. When it crackled to life, he leaned in and stated in a completely self-assured tone, "I'm here for 512 B."

His three companions held their collective breaths, unable to completely mask their astonishment when the heavy gates swung open thereby granting them entrance. Danny flopped back into his seat with an exasperated grunt. "You guys are seriously going to need a lot more chill if we're going to do this."

After parking the car, their next challenge was getting past the desk security guard on their way into the building. It was Danny's contention that all they had to do was stroll through the lobby like they lived there and head straight to the elevators afterwards. He was expecting it to be cake. Of course, they weren't more than five feet from the gleaming elevators before the security guard rose from his seat and asked who they were.

"We're going to see our dad in 512 B," Danny replied with unperturbed smoothness. He was taking a shot in the dark that whoever lived in that apartment was male and also of a similar ethnic background to at least _one_ of them.

"Is that so?" the security guard asked, "I wasn't aware Mr. Patel had any children."

"Yeah, he likes to pretend he doesn't," Danny replied with a suitably betrayed expression, "That's the problem. My brother and I are here to remind him, otherwise Mom is going to get the court involved."

"Oh boy. I don't want to deal with any domestic disputes."

"Don't worry. We're not going to make trouble. Our parents just went through a nasty divorce. We're trying to make sense of everything. Dad won't answer our calls so we had to come to him. Believe me, this isn't our first choice either." He nudged Rico for back up. "Is it?"

"N...no, no," Rico stammered, "Not at all."

The security guard sighed. "You poor kids. Shame that you're caught in the middle like that. Go on up. I never could stand deadbeat fathers."

Only when the elevator doors had completely shut behind them and they had punched the button for the fifth floor did the four friends slump forward with relief. Rico wiped at his perspiring brow with a shaking hand and wilted back against the elevator wall. "Oh my god, what a rush!" he burst out, "That was so awesome and so scary at the same time! I almost peed my pants!"

"I'm actually surprised it worked," Danny said, "Honestly, I was just spit-balling to see what stuck. As soon as he mentioned the guy's last name though, I knew I'd been automatically drafted as his kid. I figured he'd buy Rico as my brother but, I still wasn't sure if the whole thing would fly."

"How did you know exactly what to say to him?" Jo asked, "For a minute there, you had _me_ believing you were a poor, disillusioned child of divorce."

"You can't just make up a lie," Danny explained, "It takes more finesse than that. When he mentioned not knowing the guy had children, I figured I was dealing with a single guy who lived alone and went from there. You have to let the other person lead you with their responses so you end up telling them exactly what they want to hear or, at least, what sounds plausible to them."

Lacey surveyed him with a probing expression, a little chilled by his detailed explanation. "I'm glad you were able to get us out of that," she told him, "But, at the same time, it's really disturbing how smoothly you lie, Danny. You've practically turned it into an art form."

He favored her with an earnest smile. "I promise I only use my powers for good, Lace."

"I'm being serious," she murmured, "Is that what you did to me when we were together? Did you tell me what I wanted to hear?"

The humor in Danny's eyes was gradually replaced with regret. "Sometimes," he answered with unreserved honesty, "It was easier than the alternative. But never again. I swear that to you, Lacey." He glanced at Jo and Rico as well. "I won't do that to any of you."

Upon reaching the fifth floor, the atmosphere among the four was a great deal more subdued, mainly due to the fact they were finally going to discover who exactly had sent Regina Crane that last cryptic warning wrapped with a stack of cash. They approached the apartment, which was located at the far end of the corridor with a mixture of fear and anticipation. Once they stood before the door, Lacey double-checked the address on the envelope.

"This is the place," she said, "Now what?"

"Now we knock and introduce ourselves," Danny whispered. With Jo, Lacey and Rico all flanking him, he covered the peephole with one hand and knocked firmly with the other. He cocked his ear closer to the door, listening carefully for any discernible sounds that someone might be loitering around inside. When he heard none, Danny experimentally tried the door handle, not at all surprised to find it locked.

"Okay," he said, "I'm going to need you guys to cover me for a minute."

Rico's jaw dropped when Danny produced his lock picking kit. "Wait!" he protested, "Are you seriously going to break into this apartment right now?"

"Yes."

"Danny, this is illegal," Rico hissed, "What about your probation?"

"Haven't we covered this already? I've already crossed state lines and lied my way into this place," Danny told him, "I'm not leaving until I get answers. You can wait in the car if this is too much for you but, I gotta do this."

Jo gave Rico a light nudge with her shoulder. "You've come this far," she whispered, "What's one more thing?"

"Well, make it quick," Rico grumbled in a begrudging tone as he, Lacey and Jo gamely shielded Danny while he picked the lock, "I'm not an expert in subterfuge or anything but, I kinda think the three of us standing around like this might look a little suspicious."

"Done!" Danny announced, pushing open the door with an audible click. He straightened and regarded his friends with a triumphant smile. "Shall we?"

They proceeded inside carefully, still completely unsure that the apartment was actually empty. After calling out several times and receiving no answer, the four were able to relax a bit. Only then did they truly start to take in their surroundings.

The interior of the apartment was not what any of them had anticipated at all. Given the luxury of the community, grounds and apartment building itself, they entered expecting to find a plethora of designer furniture and expensive paintings. Instead they found a barely used kitchen, a single bottle of newly opened red wine on the polished granite countertop with a pile of junk mail beside it and a single couch and television that completed the living room decor.

Lacey swept up the pile of mail and quickly thumbed through the correspondence. "His first name is Michael, you guys and it seems like he might be something of a minimalist," she remarked, "There's not much here." She held up a brochure featuring a mountain cabin getaways in the Poconos. "Looks like he might be contemplating a vacation though."

Danny found his attention drawn to the label on the wine bottle. He traced his finger along the edge, his brows drawing in a deep frown. Lacey noticed his preoccupation immediately. "What is it?"

"Nothing," he said with a dismissive shrug, "It's just...my dad used to drink this brand. It was his favorite."

She wanted to reach across the space between him and draw him into her arms for a hug because she suspected he was probably struggling with painful memories right then but such a gesture seemed as if it would cross the unspoken boundary between them so Lacey remained rooted in place. Instead, she responded with a quiet, "Oh. I guess your dad and Michael Patel have similar taste in wine."

Jo hopped nervously from foot to foot. "Well, as fascinating as all of this is, you guys, I don't really want to be here when Mr. Patel returns home," she said, "So maybe we should split up so we can cover more ground more quickly and then get out of here."

Danny jerked his head in terse agreement. "Okay."

While Lacey, Jo and Rico divided off in different directions, Danny found himself lingering in the kitchen, feeling overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of déjà vu. His mind was percolating with Lacey's offhand comment. There was something so eerily familiar about the kitchen, other things besides the wine that he found oddly reminiscent of his father...a particular brand of coffee, the faint odor of spicy incense that hung in the air and even the foods he found in the refrigerator which also contained a number of his father's favorites. He could feel his father's presence so strongly in the apartment that it almost knocked him off of his feet.

He couldn't help but question his sanity a little. Danny couldn't be sure if the similarities he was finding were actual reality or if his mind was simply playing tricks on him. The former seemed too incredible to contemplate and the latter seemed equally unlikely. He certainly hadn't come to Newport, Connecticut harboring the secret theory that his father might possibly be alive and living under an alias but, now that the idea had started taking root in his brain, Danny couldn't shake it off.

As the first tendrils of true alarm and fear began unfolding deep in his gut, Danny found himself drifting into the bathroom in a daze. His slow, deliberate movements were in stark contrast to his friends. They scurried from one corner of the apartment to another like industrious ants, carefully picking through Michael Patel's meager belongings before moving on. Meanwhile, Danny felt like he had just walked into an episode of the Twilight Zone. With mounting panic, he noted the razors, aftershave and other brands of toiletries his father that had also been preferences of his father. The more he saw, the more convinced he became. His crazy theory was growing less "crazy" by the second!

Still, he made a valiant attempt to reason with himself. Surely, he was making a completely illogical leap! The idea was ridiculous! Insane! Utterly irrational! The implications that his father might still be alive would be bone chilling, disturbing and undeniably twisted. There was no way, no possible earthly reason why he should believe that Michael Patel and Vikram Desai were one in the same. It was just an eerie coincidence that Michael Patel's apartment smelled like his father's old home office and that he seemed to like a lot of the same foods his father had enjoyed and use the exact brands of soap his father had as well. It certainly didn't mean that Vikram Desai was alive and yet...that was exactly what Danny was beginning to believe.

But despite the growing evidence, Danny struggled to keep things in perspective because he knew the idea was ludicrous, especially when he was basing it on evidence that was utterly flimsy. However, that didn't stop him from charging into the bedroom for more answers. He passed Rico his way inside, who quickly assured him that he'd found nothing of consequence but that didn't deter Danny at all. He was on a mission to find the truth.

Danny entered the bedroom, crossing over immediately to the open closet which housed only a handful of outfits and a few designer suits. He drifted closer, reaching out to take hold of one of the sleeves and bring it to his nose. He inhaled the faint scent that clung to the fibers, his entire body trembling anew when he detected the scent of his father's aftershave there too. Though it had been almost three years since the last time he had smelled it, that scent wasn't one easily forgotten. Danny associated it with most of the happy memories he had of his father.

Suddenly driven like someone possessed, Danny impulsively began checking the pockets of all the clothing and scouring the tiny space for any confirmation that his suspicions were valid. Unfortunately, the bedroom was about as sparsely decorated as the rest of the apartment and yielded very few clues beyond its occupant's meticulous demeanor. His hope starting to wan, Danny was in the process of flipping through the bed and inspecting underneath the mattress when he caught sight of something curious as he was tossing a pillow. The photograph dropped from the pillowcase onto the bed without warning. He plucked it from the rumpled sheets, his breath catching in his throat in a pained whimper when he saw it.

It had been taken after one of his junior soccer games. He couldn't have been much older than five years old. He was still in his uniform, the royal blue and gold jersey streaked with grass stains and grime and his short, sweaty hair was sticking up at odd angles. Vikram, impervious to his filth, had him lifted onto his shoulders so that Danny was seated across his neck with his legs dangling down over his father's chest. The two of them grinned widely for the camera while Danny hoisted his winning trophy high. Danny remembered that photo. He remembered the day his mother had taken it. He remembered how proud his father had been.

Danny stared at the picture with unseeing eyes, his face and body suddenly hot and clammy. The walls of the room seemed to press in on him. He could feel himself starting to lose focus. His thoughts began to spiral in a dizzying whir. There was only one salient point that pounded in his brain again and again. There was no reasoning it away, no logical explanation to be presented. The simple truth of it was...there wasn't a single reason why Michael Patel from Newport, Connecticut should have a photo from Danny's childhood hidden in his pillowcase. He thought about that night at Regina's house when her killer had paused in the middle of attacking him...the way his dark eyes had flared briefly with recognition and Danny literally felt sick.

Nothing about any of it made sense at all unless...Michael Patel from Newport, Connecticut was in actuality his long presumed dead father...Vikram Desai.


	25. Chapter Twenty Four

**A/N: First, yes. To answer the anon's question, I do have a set amount of chapters. This story is outlined for 37 chapters plus an epilogue. Second, there's a little bit of sexual content at the end of this chapter. If you'd like to avoid that, this is your warning.**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty Four**

"Has Danny been acting weird to you lately?"

Lacey finished gathering her books from her locker and closed the door before favoring Jo with a mildly expectant look. "When doesn't Danny act weird?" she wondered in a dry tone, "You'll have to be more specific."

"Okay then, weirder than usual," Jo clarified, "He's barely spoken a word to me and Rico all morning and then he didn't sit with us at lunch period. It's not like him to be so distant. I feel like something's been off with him ever since we came back from Connecticut."

"That's it?" Lacey huffed a little impatiently, "He didn't sit with you at lunch and you're wringing your hands about it? I didn't sit with you at lunch either, Jo. You don't seem all that concerned about me."

"That's because you're woefully predictable, Lacey," Jo replied airily, "I already knew you weren't going to sit with us because you're back to playing the Danny avoidance game again."

Lacey couldn't completely deny that allegation. Although it had not been entirely deliberate this time, she had to admit that she'd been giving him the wide berth that day. She was still struggling with the discovery that Danny could be such a convincing liar. As talented as he was at spinning stories and compelling people to trust him, Lacey couldn't help but be repelled by his ability because it made her question his sincerity and his motives. It was difficult to trust the notion that she knew the _real_ Danny Desai at all. Did he really feel as deeply for her as he claimed or was he only manipulating her to get what he wanted?

On the one hand, Lacey's gut told her "no." Yes, Danny could be conniving at times but it was a trait born out of self-preservation and not arrogant indulgence. It wasn't as if he gained some perverse sort of thrill from making fools out of others. On the other hand, however, Lacey's poor, bruised heart was a fickle and tentative thing. She couldn't forget how stringently he'd guarded the secret about what happened the night of Regina's murder for weeks and how she had never even suspected that he was hiding a thing. As much as she wanted to trust Danny fully, she couldn't quite banish the niggling doubts about him that remained.

However, now that she was fully aware of the fact that she had been avoiding him because of it, Lacey slowly became aware that _he_ had been avoiding her as well. It was a surprising realization. Usually when she pulled her duck and run routine Lacey could feel Danny's eyes following her wherever she went. And, no matter how resistant she seemed to his company, he typically tried to make some effort to engage her in conversation. With stubborn perseverance and affable charm, he would systematically break down her defenses against him until she was smiling in spite of her resolve to ignore him.

Today, he had done none of that. In fact, beyond the brief nod he'd given her that morning when they passed one another in the hall, Danny had kept himself rather scarce. She had been so busy unconsciously evading him that she never realized he'd been doing the same exact thing to her. And, upon receiving that bit of insight, Lacey discovered that she didn't like the implication. Not at all.

Jo did have a point too. When she thought about it, Danny _had_ been inordinately silent on the drive back from Connecticut. That night, she had attributed his reticence to disappointment over what essentially turned out to be a wasted trip. Beyond learning the name of the apartment's occupant, they still had no concrete evidence tying Michael Patel to Regina. It made sense that Danny would be frustrated, moody and disappointed in the aftermath. Now, speaking to Jo, Lacey was beginning to wonder if it was more than that.

"Have you tried talking to him about it?" she asked Jo pensively.

"Of course. He says he's fine," Jo replied, "But he's doing that thing shifty thing he does when there's something he's not telling you. I just know something's up."

"Well, if he's not telling you what's going on, what makes you think he's going to tell me?" Lacey cried in a helpless tone, "Things are weird between us as it is."

"I was thinking that you could remind him of his promise not to keep secrets from us anymore," Jo said, "Let's just say, given his desire to _reconnect_ , it would be more compelling coming from you."

Lacey decided to corner him right before he disappeared into the boy's locker room to prepare for soccer practice. She bravely ignored the sideways glances she received from the other players as they passed. By now, it was common knowledge that she and Archie had broken up so that left no question as to the reason Lacey was milling around outside of the locker room. It felt rather strange being the one to chase Danny for a change and she had to admit she wasn't totally adverse to the idea. He was visibly startled when he found her standing there waiting for him.

"Hey...what's up?" he greeted rather hesitantly.

"Not much," she replied, pointedly ignoring the wary look he was giving her right then, "How's it going?"

"Um...okay. About to head in for practice. How about you?"

"Good. Very good. My mom made Clara and me crepes for breakfast this morning, so that was surprisingly elegant and domestic of her," Lacey recounted in a casual tone, "Um...I made an A on my English paper so that was also pretty nice. Toby Bennett launched a spitball into Sarita's hair during sixth period, so I got a little chuckle from that too." Danny's mouth twitched at the visual but he didn't smile completely. "All in all," she finished expansively, "it hasn't been too bad of a day."

He pursed his lips in response, nonplussed by her attempt at small talk. "Congratulations on all of that...I guess. Thank you for sharing."

"Now it's your turn," she invited.

"My turn to do what?" he replied blankly.

"To share the details of _your_ day." When he continued to stare at her as if she'd suddenly begun speaking in Arabic, Lacey forged on by getting straight to the point. "Um...so yeah, you haven't really said much to any of us today, which is unusual for you. It set off a few alarm bells for us and Jo and I were just wondering if there might be something going on with you."

She saw it then, the quick, surreptitious flickering in his eyes before he replied with complete nonchalance, "No. Everything's fine."

Lacey fell back with a breathless, disbelieving laugh. "Oh my god...Jo was right. You're doing it again! You're actually _lying_ to me right now."

Danny dismissed the accusation with an eye roll and wave of his hand. "I don't know what you're talking about, Lacey, and I'm going to be late, so..."

"Yes, you do! I saw it on your face just now. You're lying to me, Danny, and after you _promised_ me that you were done with that!"

"I'm not lying to you about anything, Lacey," he retorted sharply, "You're not automatically privileged to know every little thing that happens in my life! Maybe there are some things going on with me that I want to keep to myself! I don't have to tell you everything!"

"So you admit that there is something going on with you?" she flung back in accusation.

Danny threw up his hands in an exasperated gesture. "You know what?" he bit out suddenly, temper flaring, "You don't get to do this, Lacey! You don't get to know everything that goes on in my head at every given moment! I don't owe you an explanation for every single thing that I do!"

"What did you say?"

"You heard me! We're not together," he bit out, "You obviously don't trust me so we're barely friends either, so quit acting like I owe you something!"

Lacey sucked in a stunned breath. "Oh wow. Tell me how you _really_ feel, Danny." She was taken off guard by his unprecedented hostility. It didn't seem like him at all and she told him so.

"How would you know what is and isn't like me?" he scoffed bitterly, "Aren't you the one always saying that you don't know me at all?"

"Why are you being like this?" she murmured in a hurt filled tone.

Abruptly, Danny slumped forward with a beaten expression, completely drained of emotion and fight. "I'm not ever going to win with you, am I?" he whispered, "You're always going to run everything I do and say through a filter because, no matter what happens between us, you're never going to see me as anything other than a liar. And I get that. Hell, I _deserve_ that! But that doesn't mean I have to waste my time trying to convince you to do something you've already decided is impossible."

"And what's that, Danny?" she demanded at his back when he started to walk away.

He favored her with a sad, embittered glance over his shoulder. "Trust me."

Lacey took the disheartening results of her conversation with Danny to Jo when they met at her car in the school parking lot a short time later. Jo absorbed her account with a measure of confusion and incredulity. "And he just completely went off on you for no reason?" she said, "That doesn't even sound like Danny."

"I know. It doesn't," Lacey agreed, "Something happened with him. Something bad, Jo. I'm really scared."

Before they could discuss it further, Rico jogged over to join them with a jaunty smile. "What are we talking about?"

"The usual. Danny's being enigmatic again," Jo sighed.

"Really?" Rico groaned, "What's happened now?"

Lacey shook her head in helpless dismay. "No clue. But he pretty much bit my head off when I tried to push him about it."

Rico considered a brief list of possibilities for the inexplicable shift in Danny's mood. "He was acting weird last night when we were searching that apartment," he recalled, "He tossed that guy's bedroom like he was looking for something specific."

"Yeah," Lacey murmured, "I noticed that too."

"I don't suppose he found anything," Rico considered, "otherwise I'm sure he would have mentioned it to us. Right?"

Jo snorted at the assumption. "Yes, _normal_ people would probably mention it but, we're talking about Danny here."

"Maybe we should ask him about it," Lacey said.

"I'm not going to do that," Jo replied, shaking her head firmly, "I don't know about you but, frankly I'm getting a little sick of having to pull every little thing out of him! We're his friends! We love him! We've proven to him over and over again that he can trust us so I don't understand why we have to keep doing this with him again and again!"

"You're the one who said we needed to be patient with him," Lacey reminded her.

"You're right," Jo agreed glumly, "I did. But this whole situation is becoming so frustrating! I know something's up with him right now but...honestly? I'm tired of obsessing over it! I'm tired of playing 'solve the mystery' with him. It's gotten real old, real fast."

"So what do you want to do?" Lacey asked.

"I don't know."

Rico decided to interject his own thoughts at that point. "Okay, I think we can agree that these past few weeks have been getting a little Danny centric," he said, "When we're not obsessing about what he knows or doesn't know or is saying or isn't saying then we're trying to figure out his motives and the reasons he does the things he does. It hasn't left us a lot of room for anything else lately."

Jo surveyed him in curious expectation. "So what are you suggesting?"

"Well, I was thinking...wondering maybe...if perhaps we could...if maybe you'd like to...um...do an activity together that...um...doesn't involve the mysterious and deceitful Danny Desai for once...," he stammered in suggestion, managing to look everywhere except Jo's face.

"An activity?" Jo echoed blankly.

"Yeah, you know...like a movie or...or mini-golf or even...um...hanging out together at the mall or something. Any activity really that teenagers typically engage in." At last, he ventured a careful glance up at her. "What do you think of that?"

Jo offered a light shrug of consent at his offer. "Sounds like it might be fun," she said, turning to regard Lacey, "How about you? Are you in the mood for some mini golf?"

Lacey bit back a knowing smile, spying Rico's deflated reaction in her peripheral vision. "Jo, I'm thinking Rico meant just _you and him_ tonight. I'm not trying to be a third wheel."

Any intention Jo had of vehemently protesting the possibility of _anyone_ being a third wheel to her and Rico was thwarted by the sudden approach of Tyler Louis. Jo hadn't spoken to him since that misbegotten night of Regina Crane's party though she had noticed his lingering stares in the hall sometimes as she went to class. She didn't necessarily return his interest but she did find his preoccupation with her curious.

Rico and Lacey didn't share her intrigue, however. They were clearly annoyed that he had come over at all. It was well known to Lacey that Tyler Louis didn't have a great reputation with the ladies. If he was truly interested in Jo then it probably wasn't a good thing. Consequently, she and Rico both regarded him with unwelcoming looks but for completely different reasons.

Impervious to their obvious dislike of him, Tyler flashed Jo a toothy smile. "Hello, Jo Masterson."

"Hello, Tyler Louis," she replied politely, "To what do I owe this unexpected meeting?"

"The hope that you can make my birthday wishes come true."

While Lacey and Rico exchanged furtive eye rolls and grimaces over his cheesy pick up line, Jo merely gaped at him. "Excuse me? Come again."

"It's my birthday today," Tyler explained, "I'm having my annual, 'raise the dead,' cemetery birthday bash and I want you to be there." He flicked Lacey and Rico with cursory glances. "Feel free to bring your friends if you want. The more, the merrier."

"She's not interested, Tyler," Rico inserted boldly before Jo could get in a word edgewise, "Don't you have some film that needs editing or something?"

"Wait a second," Jo hissed at him in a conspiratorial under-breath, "Weren't you just saying five seconds ago that you wanted to do an activity tonight? This is an activity."

"This isn't exactly what I had in mind!" Rico hissed back.

"It could be fun," Jo considered in a louder tone.

Tyler smirked in triumph. "It _will_ be fun. Come if you can. Eight o'clock. I'd love to see you there."

"What kind of person has their birthday party at a cemetery?" Rico grimaced, "That guy is too weird."

"What makes him weird?" Jo demanded a little testily, "Because he likes me?"

"No," Rico retorted, "Because birthday parties in _cemeteries_ are generally weird. And creepy. There's that too."

Lacey interrupted their back and forth bickering with a weary sigh. "Well, you guys have fun tonight. I have zero interest in going to this thing."

Rico snorted an incredulous laugh. "Don't worry. Neither do we."

Jo glared at him, irritated by his newly acquired habit of speaking on her behalf. "Excuse me? Who says _I'm_ not going? I haven't decided yet."

Predictably, Rico reacted to that statement as if she'd just doused herself in lighter fluid and struck a match. "Um...have you forgotten what happened the last time you went to a party like that?" he reminded her stridently, "You ended up hungover because of _that_ guy! I remember because I was the one holding your hair back the next day while you puked in the bushes!"

She grimaced in humiliation. "Thank you so much for that reminder, Rico."

"Hey, it wasn't exactly pleasant for me either. I don't want to relive it!"

"That won't happen again. I just need to blow off some steam, do something out of the ordinary!"

"Mini golf is the perfect way to blow off steam. If you buy three games then the fourth one is free."

"Wow, you're really living on the edge there, Rico."

He frowned at the note of criticism in her tone. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means would it kill you to act like a normal teenager for once? Rebel a little? Step outside of your comfort zone every once in a while?"

"Um...I've actually been doing that for the past month!" he retorted, "Did you forget that we just crossed state lines last night and broke into some random guy's apartment? It doesn't get any edgier than that! Frankly, I miss the zone. I'm craving a little comfort right now."

"I meant something less _Danny_ related!"

"Hence the mini golf," Rico stressed, "We can even race the go karts if you wanna get really crazy."

Jo sighed, visibly dissatisfied with the offer. "I'm going to party," she stated flatly, "I think it will be fun. You can sit it out if you want."

"So you're just going to ditch me?"

"We don't have to do everything together, Rico."

"Fine!" he bit out, his jaw tightening in frustration, "Do what you want! Have fun at the cemetery!" He started to stalk away only to turn back at the last second to add, "You see? What kind of statement is that? Cemeteries are for dead people! That doesn't even _sound_ like fun!"

Lacey watched him stomp away with an aggravated groan. "Why would you do that?" she asked Jo, "You have to know he was trying to ask you out, Jo." She slid into the driver's seat and cranked the ignition. " _No one_ is that obtuse."

Jo dropped into the passenger's side seat with a despondent sigh. "Yeah. I know."

"Then why did you blow him off like that? And for Tyler Louis' crypt party of all things? He's bad news, Jo. If he's interested in you then that's not a good thing. Rico's right. That guy is creepy and gross."

"He said weird."

"Gross should definitely be added," Lacey volleyed back, "So what gives? Are you interested in Tyler?"

"No!" Jo scoffed, "Not even remotely close!"

Lacey split her attention between probing Jo for answers and backing her car out from its parking space. "Then what's the deal?"

"Rico and I have a good thing going, a very solid friendship. I don't want to complicate that."

"That's happening whether you like it or not, Jo. Rico likes you. I'm thinking that's not going to change anytime soon. You're going to have to address his feelings for you eventually."

"Maybe...but that won't be tonight," Jo said in deliberate dismissal, "Tonight I want a drama free evening. Come with me to this party. You need the distraction too, Lace."

Lacey nibbled her lip in pensive consideration. "I don't know..."

"We both know that you're just going to sit at home all night and obsess over Danny otherwise," Jo predicted, "Save yourself the trouble and come with me."

"It doesn't sound like fun."

"We'll make it fun."

"I should really figure out what's going on with him, Jo."

"It can keep until tomorrow. I'm pretty sure he'll still be brooding about it. He's predictable like that. I'm not taking 'no' for an answer."

"Oh, alright! Fine!," Lacey consented rather grumpily, "I'll come with you but we're staying an hour and that's it."

That hour, unfortunately, proved to be one of the longest of Lacey's entire life. Of course, Tyler Louis would decide to invite Sarita and all of her stuck up friends in addition to practically the entire soccer team. Danny, however, was conspicuously absent. Lacey didn't know if she was relieved by that fact, because she could avoid needless confrontation with him, or annoyed because she knew he had been left out deliberately. The latter thought irritated her but also filled her with guilt because that was essentially what she, Jo and Rico had planned to do that night as well. They had deliberately left Danny out and they were supposed to be his friends.

Lacey hated the sense of obligation she felt towards him but she couldn't shake it either. Danny might feel that he didn't owe her anything, however, Lacey didn't share those same sentiments. It didn't matter that they were no longer together. She felt as tied to him as ever, perhaps even more so. Lacey mentally shook her head at the irony. She had come to Tyler Louis's cemetery party to enjoy a drama, Danny free evening. The objective had been _not_ to obsess over him. So far, she wasn't doing a very stellar job.

After fifteen minutes, Lacey ended up loitering near the beer cooler while Jo had her time monopolized by Tyler. It was a stark change from six months prior. Back then, she would have been deep in the circle of the cool kids and would have felt a sense of easiness in being there. Now she stood on the fringes, watching Sarita and her friends laugh behind their hands (probably at her too), feeling uncomfortable and out of place and wishing fervently that she had stayed home to read a book.

"It didn't have to be like this, you know."

Lacey jerked her gaze upright, groaning inwardly when she saw Archie making his way over towards her. "What do you want, Archie?"

"You could have been over there laughing with us and having a good time," he said, "But you threw it all away for DePsycho. Seems like a waste, don't you think?"

"Is that why you came over here? To tell me 'I told you so?'"

"I _did_ warn you that this would happen. I told you he was bad news from the start and that he was going to ruin you, Lacey."

"Well, good for you on predicting the future," Lacey muttered, "You can go now."

Archie angled a searching look around her. "Where is he anyway? Couldn't bother to show up and stand by his girl?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Lacey countered tartly, "I can't help but notice that most of the soccer team is here. Did you misplace Danny's invitation?"

"He plays on the field with us and we have to tolerate that _for now_ but he's not part of the team. That's never going to happen."

"That's your loss, Archie...because he's a great player and a great guy."

"Yeah, tell that to my face," he bit out, gesturing to the black and blue marks that still encircled both of his eyes.

Lacey cut him a quelling glance. "That was a fight _you_ started, Archie."

"Which he was only too happy to finish."

"So no matter what, it's always going to be his fault? Is that it?"

"I just don't understand how you can't see him for what he is."

"I _do_ see him for what he is. He's not perfect and he definitely isn't ideal but he's trying to be a better person. He wants to be better and I give him credit for that."

Archie stepped closer, lowering his head so that his lips were almost against her ear when he whispered, "Tell me this...if the guy's such a saint then why are you here alone?"

Lacey started to push him away and admonish him about invading her personal space but, just as she raised her hands, she caught sight of Danny standing approximately sixty feet away, across the neat field of headstones that separated him. She didn't need a clear glimpse of his expression to know that he was reading the situation between her and Archie completely wrong. Lacey could tell simply by the stiff line of his shoulders and the way he shook his head and shoved his hands deep into his pockets before walking away. Lacey muttered a longsuffering curse under her breath.

"I gotta go," she mumbled, already heading off in direction Danny had gone.

"Why do you always have to chase after him?" Archie demanded at her back, clearly frustrated by her choice.

She offered him a sad, little smile in answer. "Why do you think?"

As Lacey took off after Danny, Jo noted their departure with a mixture of concern and aggravation. Part of her felt that she should join Lacey in her quest to discover the source of Danny's latest crisis but part of her also resented always having to draw the truth out of him. It was exhausting and discouraging because, at times, it felt as if they would never gain Danny's complete trust. Part of him would always feel like he had to go it alone.

And, as if that weren't enough to contend with, now she had Rico trying to put the moves on her. That new development unsettled Jo greatly. It had taken her a long time to find stability in her life again after years of emotional upheaval, ongoing depression ad constant anxiety. She hadn't been exaggerating when she'd told Lacey that Rico was her rock. Besides her parents, he had become the one person on whom she knew she could absolutely depend no matter what. Even Lacey and Danny, as much as she loved them both, hadn't yet achieved that status in her eyes. The fact that Rico was now attempting to upset that stable foundation for something as fickle as romance both angered and frightened her. She resented him for even daring to take the risk.

It was due to those jumbled emotions that she allowed Tyler Louis to lead her away from the party even while she suspected that his request to "talk" was just a ruse to get her alone. She listened to him lay his spin about how "pretty" and "interesting" she was and how she wasn't shallow or vain like all of the other girls he had known. He called her "pure" and "innocent," which, for some reason, didn't sound incredibly complimentary to Jo but, she suspected, was supposed to make her swoon.

When he finally leaned in to kiss her, she let him, mostly out of curiosity for how it would feel. She had glimpsed enough kisses between Lacey and Danny to have an idea of what made a good kiss. They would go at it like they couldn't get enough, as if being mouth to mouth was a matter of actual life and death. Jo waited for that same desperation, that same uncontainable passion to overwhelm her too. She waited and she waited and...it didn't.

Instead, she was acutely aware of how cold and wet his lips felt and the stale taste of beer that lingered on his tongue. His cologne smelled too strong and she didn't particularly like the way he was holding her either. It just felt wrong. _He_ felt wrong. Jo wasn't sure what she wanted at that point but she knew for certain it wasn't Tyler Louis.

She pushed him away and swiped the back of her hand across her mouth, wiping away the taste of him. "I think that's enough," she informed him a little breathlessly.

He smiled at her with glassy eyes and reached for her again. "Well, I think we're just getting started."

Jo threw out her arms to stave him off as he yanked her close again, her strident protest dying in her throat as Tyler was suddenly ripped off of her. "She said that's enough!" Jo barely had enough time to process Rico's sudden materialization out of nowhere before he was throwing a haphazard punch at Tyler. Tyler's surprised bellow was cut short when Rico clipped the his jaw in a surprisingly hard blow. Unfortunately, Rico really didn't have a chance to rejoice over his success because he was immediately doubling over with a pained yelp to nurse his bruised knuckles.

"Oh god, that hurt! I think I broke my hand!"

Before he could prepare himself, Tyler was shoving him hard and then landing two powerful punches to his mid-section which dropped him to the ground with an agonized groan. Even after he was down, Tyler delivered a kick to his abdomen. Jo screamed Rico's name and immediately scurried to his side to offer aid and simultaneously shield him from any further attacks. She glared up at Tyler. "Leave him alone!" she spat at him, "He was already down! You didn't have to kick him, you stupid bully!"

"Well, you're a tease and I should have known better than to waste my time!" He scraped her with contemptuous glare. "He can have you!"

After he stumbled away, Jo turned her full attention to Rico and carefully assisted him into an upright position. He grunted and groaned with each movement. "Are you okay?" Jo murmured solicitously, "Where are you hurting right now?"

"Everywhere," he wheezed, "I'm pretty sure he ruptured my spleen."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Jo found herself biting back a smile. "I doubt it's that serious."

"Well, at the very least he broke my hand," Rico insisted, showcasing his bruised and swollen knuckles for effect, "I swear his face is made of concrete and steel."

That time, Jo couldn't keep herself from laughing outright. "What were you thinking?" she asked with a wry chuckle, "I thought you said you weren't coming tonight."

"I wasn't going to come. But that guy's a complete douchebag, Jo. I was worried about you being alone with him."

"I wasn't alone. Lacey came with me. But Danny showed up and she went after him a little while ago."

"Oh," Rico replied rather sheepishly, "So, I...uh...I guess I got my ass handed back to me for nothing."

"It wasn't for nothing," Jo murmured, "I'm glad you're here, Rico. You always have my back."

"And I always will," he vowed softly. He ducked his head to meet her eyes and favor her with an earnest expression. "You know why that is, don't you?"

"Please don't say it..." she groaned.

But, he didn't say it at all. Instead, he leaned forward and pressed an impulsive kiss to her parted lips. It was so fleeting that it was over before Jo could even process what was happening. And yet, in spite of its brevity, that kiss packed an emotional wallop. She felt as if she had been whacked in the chest with a 4x4. Her heart seemed to stop, then jumpstart and then begin pounding like a jackhammer. The feeling was unexpected, exhilarating and a little overwhelming.

Rico watched her conflicted emotions dance across her features in rapid succession. "You don't have to say anything," he whispered, "You don't even have to like me back. I know my timing is probably all wrong and having yet another guy plant an unwanted kiss on you was the last thing you wanted tonight but... I needed you to know how I felt, Jo. I needed you to really understand because you wouldn't let me say the words. You don't have to want me back...but you needed to know."

Jo nodded dumbly, searching her mind for something profound to say in return but coming up empty. Finally, she stammered, "I...I don't know what to say to you right now."

"Don't say anything," he sighed, "Except maybe to make an offer to drive me to the hospital. I think I might need an x-ray."

For the third time in a ten minute span, Jo felt herself veer crazily from uncertainty and tears to laughter. "Okay," she agreed, "Let me text Lacey and let her know what's happened." Once she had completed that task, she assisted Rico to his feet. "Are you sure you trust me to drive your mom's car?" she asked, "I only just got my learner's permit."

Rico held up his rapidly swelling hand. "Do I have much of a choice?"

Lacey received Jo's text just as she finally caught up with Danny at his father's gravesite. He stared despondently at the headstone and appeared so lost in thought that she wasn't certain he'd even registered her approach until he asked, "Did you know that my father specifically requested in his will not to be buried next to my Aunt Tara? I guess that sibling rivalry ran pretty deep."

"Why did they hate each other so much?"

"Who knows? My dad always said it was because Tara resented him for having everything that _she_ wanted. She was such a bitter, hateful bitch I can believe it. That was probably the only true thing he ever told me."

She gasped at his words, not because he had said anything untrue but because, in all the years she had known him and despite all the abuse he had suffered at her hands, Lacey had never heard Danny speak about his aunt that way. Nor had she ever heard him express such bitterness towards his father either. It was as if something had broken open inside of him and his filter had been obliterated. The Danny Desai version of drunk truth-telling except he was completely sober. The change in him concerned Lacey greatly and she found herself wondering, yet again, what had shifted for him so drastically overnight.

"What are you doing out here, Danny?" she asked softly.

His lips twisted in an embittered smirk. "Why do you want to know? Did I interrupt your little moment with Archie back there?"

"I wasn't having a 'moment' with Archie."

"That's not how it looked to me."

"Why do you even care?" Lacey challenged with a haughty lift of her chin, "You told me earlier today that you don't owe me anything. Doesn't that mean that _I_ don't owe you anything either?"

"I didn't ask you to be here! You're the one who followed me out here, Lacey!"

"And I found you standing here at your father's gravesite," she replied, dropping all pretense at indifference towards him, "What's going on with you, Danny?"

He stared blindly at his father's headstone. "I was just thinking that if you can't believe in your own family then who can you really trust? Maybe no one. Maybe I'm meant to be on my own and that's how it's always going to be."

"I don't believe that," she whispered in protest. The abject misery in his voice was enough to compel her to close the distance between them and sweep up his hand in her own. He turned his head to regard her with glistening eyes. "You can trust _me_ , Danny," she cajoled gently, "I'm here for you and I swear I always will be. Let me in. Please."

Danny struggled visibly to put faith in her words but he was still too raw from recent betrayals and his battered heart wouldn't chance the possibility of more pain. With a resigned sigh, he tugged his fingers from Lacey's grasp and shook his head. "You should go," he advised her thickly, "There's nothing for you here, Lacey."

"How can you say that? Haven't I proven over and over again that I'll stand by you?"

"It doesn't matter. Just go back to your friends and forget about me," he told her, "This was wrong. _I_ was wrong for you. I'm sorry I ruined everything you had going when I came back here."

"You didn't ruin anything. You made it better."

"It's not better for me," he countered in a hollow tone, "And I don't want to do this with you anymore, Lacey. I'm tired. We keep going around in circles and we're not getting anywhere. I'm done." He shouldered past her, steeling himself against the devastated expression on her face when he added, "It was fun while it lasted."

His glib marginalization of their relationship and everything they had shared in the past month should have been enough to break Lacey's resolve. It nearly was. After her confrontation with him at Vikram Desai's gravesite, she had to seek refuge in her car to sob like a child but after her tears were spent and her chest was left aching from the heartbreak he'd dealt her, Lacey found her determination to keep the promises she had made to him remained. Rather than returning home with the decision to purge every memory of him from her heart, Lacey, instead, went to the one place she knew he would run when he was hurting.

She found him hunkered down in the fort just as she knew he would be, huddled before the fire and sobbing quietly. He had set up the surrounding area with a sleeping bag and his backpack as if he meant to spend the night there. The moment she entered, however, he drew himself up straight and hastily scrubbed away the tears that clung to his cheeks. Lacey knew in that moment that there was absolutely no way she was going to walk away from him.

Lacey threw aside her purse and stubbornly crossed her arms. "I'm not leaving until you tell me what's going on with you," she stated in an implacable tone, "I've got all night, Desai."

He turned away from her, his jaw bunching with obstinate resistance. "You're wasting your time and mine. Just leave me alone, Lacey."

"No!"

Danny rounded on her with an infuriated glare. "Damn it! Would you leave me the hell alone? Just go! Get out!"

"No! I'm not leaving you! So you can throw as many temper tantrums as you want, Danny, because I'm not budging from this spot! You've spent your entire life waiting for people to let you down and leave you and I'm not letting you add me to the list! So you'd better find a way to deal with it!"

He dragged his hands through his hair with a keening sob of frustration. "You're driving me crazy! Why are you doing this?" he cried.

"You know why."

"No, I don't!" he yelled in aggravation.

"Because I love you, you idiot!" she yelled back.

The words echoed between them over the crackling hiss of the fire, stunning them both into immobility. He hadn't expected to hear the words and she definitely hadn't planned to say them. The silence that followed was deafening. Lacey had no idea how Danny would react. His scornful rejection was a very real possibility and she wasn't sure if, in spite of all her bravado, her heart could withstand another emotional beating. She knew that she could save face by minimizing her avowal or she could take it back altogether before he could gut her emotionally but, Lacey did neither. Instead, she said the words again, softer and sweeter the second time.

"I love you, Danny. Don't you know it's _killing_ me to see you in pain?"

Lacey hadn't even finished speaking before he was rushing forward to pull her into his arms and pepper her face with tearful, contrite kisses. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Lace," he wept brokenly, "I didn't mean any of that. I didn't mean it. I love you too. I love you so much..."

She drew him closer, returning his kisses with equal fervor. "I know...I know that. I just want to help you, Danny," she murmured against his lips, "Stop pushing me away." She nuzzled against him as he kept whispering apologies again and again.

Gradually, their sweet, tender kisses of reassurance and remorse began to slow and deepen, driven by emotions far more primal. With eager hands, they peeled away one another's clothing piece by piece, creating a meandering trail that littered the floor of the fort as they made their stumbling trek towards Danny's sleeping bag. He pressed open mouthed kisses across her skin, his tongue darting across her collarbone and breasts. Danny sank down to his knees to kiss and nuzzle the place where she ached for him the most and then pulled her down with him. They tangled in each other's arms, exchanging hungry, searching kisses, their hips thrusting and writhing together. His erection pulsed between them, thumping hotly against her swollen center.

Lacey leaned over him, her lips finding purchase against his bare skin. Her hands raced over his body, coasting down the smooth expanse of his chest, past the corrugated plain of his abdomen and beyond. The instant her hand came into contact with his stiffened flesh, his hissed her name, his fingers biting reflexively into her back, his lips seeking purchase against her neck. She followed his hoarse instructions for more, pleasuring him first with her hands and then with her mouth. When he finally nudged her onto her back and positioned himself over her, Danny was shaking with anticipation and so was she. There was no real, coherent thought beyond losing himself within her with the hopes that he would never be found again.

The instant Danny thrust inside of her, he knew something was different. She felt so much softer, wetter and hotter than what he remembered. He could feel the moist heat of her permeating every inch of his sensitive length and he knew immediately it was because there was no latex between them. Danny hadn't thought about the need for a condom and Lacey hadn't reminded him. He needed to stop, knew he _should_ stop but when she gripped him hard, pressed her hips higher against him and gasped in his ear to keep going, to stay inside of her and make her come, Danny closed his eyes and surged even deeper. He drove inside her in quick, fervid bursts, his hips snapping against hers again and again. Their sharp cries of pleasure melded with the rustling sounds of the forest beyond.

Danny didn't think about stopping again after that. He wasn't going to stop until he had given her everything she asked for. He wasn't going to deny her at all. In fact, he knew he wasn't going to deny her ever again.


	26. Chapter Twenty Five

**Chapter Twenty Five**

Danny rolled away from Lacey with a shuddering breath, the thick sexual haze that had enveloped him finally clearing from his mind in the wake of his orgasm. The full enormity of everything that had just transpired in the last twenty minutes hit him all at once. Despite the exhilarating high that had come with confessing their love for each other, he and Lacey had actually failed to settle a single issue between them. In addition to that, they had also been careless enough to have unprotected sex. And, as good as being inside her without any barriers had felt, it had been so very wrong and the last thing either of them needed. With everything going on in his life at the moment, adding teenage father to the list of his growing woes didn't seem like the greatest choice.

"Don't worry," Lacey said softly, easily reading his thoughts right then, "I'm pretty sure the timing's off. Either way, we'll know in a few days. That's about when I'm due for my period."

"God, Lacey..." he groaned, dragging both hands over his face.

Lacey turned her head to regard him in the flickering firelight. "Is that a 'God, Lacey, I'm so glad. We probably dodged a bullet' or is that a 'God, Lacey, I can't believe we slept together and now I regret it' groan?"

"Neither. It's a 'we still have a ton of stuff to work out between us and I don't know what the hell we just did' groan."

"Yeah," she agreed in a timid mumble, "I guess that's understandable."

He shifted on his side to face her fully, propping himself up onto his elbow. "So what is this, Lace? Does this mean we're back together? Because...it _feels_ like we're back together."

"I want us to be..." she began in a careful tone, "... _but_..."

"Of course, there's always a 'but!'"

"Can you blame me? I still don't know what's going on with you, Danny!" she cried softly, "You've been acting differently ever since we came back from Connecticut...isolating yourself, blowing off Rico and Jo, pushing me away, just generally being an ungrateful ass all around... So what gives? What happened?"

Surprisingly, Danny never made any conscious decision to tell her the truth. He had imagined that when the time finally came, _if_ it came, he would struggle mightily with himself before making the confession. But it didn't happen like that at all. He simply opened his mouth and the words came without reserve.

"When we were looking through that apartment there was stuff all over the place that reminded me of my dad," he explained gruffly, "Coffee, soap, aftershave...the place even _smelled_ like him. It was eerie and weird but, I couldn't shake this feeling I had that it wasn't a coincidence. And then I found something that pretty much confirmed what I was thinking."

"What?" Lacey prompted in a soft whisper, "What were you thinking?"

"It would be easier to show you."

Before she could question him further, he rolled to his feet and started sifting across the ground in search of his jeans. Once he had located them, he pulled something free from his back pocket and then came back to kneel at Lacey's side. "I found this in the bedroom," he said, passing her what appeared to be a photograph which had been folded in half.

Lacey slowly flipped open the picture and gasped, stunned by what she saw. "Why would Michael Patel have a picture of you and your dad in his apartment?"

Danny sucked in a fortifying breath. "Because I think Michael Patel _is_ my dad," he revealed in a hoarse whisper, "I think that my dad is alive, Lacey. That's why I've been acting like such a jerk lately. I feel like the floor pretty much dropped out from under me."

" _What?_ "

"I've gone over it and over it in my head and the more I think about it, the more it makes sense."

"Danny, are you sure about this?" Lacey prodded gently, "I know you miss your dad and you want answers from him but...could it be possible that you're only seeing what you want to see?"

"No. He's alive, Lacey. I know it!"

Lacey shifted upright and began groping around on the leaf littered ground for her shirt. "Okay, I can't have this conversation with you while I'm naked. Let's get dressed first and then I'm going to need you to start again from the beginning."

Once they were fully clothed, Lacey and Danny sat down together before the fire and then Danny proceeded to recount in detail how he had arrived at the incredible conclusion that his father was still alive. When he was done, Lacey sat speechless for several minutes. She was having understandable difficulty processing everything he'd just revealed to her. Not only was his theory disconcerting but there were a wealth of unfavorable implications that accompanied it as well.

"Danny, if this is true and your dad is really alive then that would mean he might be the one responsible for Regina's murder," Lacey considered in disbelief, "Which could also mean that he's the one framing you to take the fall for it. That's crazy!"

"Not really," Danny muttered despondently, "After all, it wouldn't be the first time he's done it."

Lacey swiveled to face him, shivering with the sudden chill that overtook her. "What does that mean?"

He closed his eyes, took a breath and figuratively stepped off the precipice on which he had been teetering for five, long years. Now that he had revealed one secret, he wanted to unburden himself of them all. "I didn't kill my Aunt Tara, Lacey," he confessed with quiet emphasis, "My dad did."

It was the first time Danny had ever uttered the words out loud, the first time he had ever referenced the details of that day to anyone besides his father and he was surprised by how freed he felt once he had. He had carried the weight and shame of that awful secret for half an excruciating decade. In a sense, keeping that secret had felt more like a prison than juvie had. Now that the truth had been exposed, he had truly been liberated.

Lacey, on the other hand, was left reeling for the second time in less than half an hour. It wasn't an easy truth to swallow, especially after she had spent five years believing something entirely different. "No...no," she protested weakly, "You strangled Tara while she was sleeping. That's what happened. That's why you went away for five years, because you...because you did it. You killed her."

"But I didn't do it, Lacey."

"You were guilty! You _said_ you were guilty!"

Danny favored her with a somber smile. "I lied. I'm pretty good at that."

Tears of disbelief and sorrow welled in her eyes as the full burden of truth settled upon her like a heavy, black shroud. "Danny, please tell me you did not spend five years of your life in prison for a murder you didn't commit! Please don't tell me that."

"I did."

Lacey surged to her feet with a pained whimper. She stared down at him with glittering eyes. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"Because my father asked me to do it," Danny replied thickly, "Because I loved him."

"Oh my God..."

"I went back into the house to get the snacks that day just like I was supposed to do," Danny recounted shakily, "I knew you and Jo were waiting so I tried to be extra quick so we could get back here to the fort. I was in the kitchen when I heard them. I knew they were fighting and that was nothing new but this time seemed different from all the other times. They were throwing things. I could hear the glass breaking. And they were yelling at each other, saying awful things, calling each other awful names.

"I remember Tara said to my dad that he was done," he continued, "that she was going to ruin him and he was going to lose everything because she had stolen all of his security."

"What security? What does that even mean?"

"I have no idea," he said, "All I know is that it seemed to set my dad off because I heard Aunt Tara yelp, like he had taken her by surprise and then she started screaming. It took me forever to work up the courage to come out of the kitchen and, when I did, I saw my dad with one hand over her mouth and the rope in his other hand. He started choking her and that sound she made...that horrible gurgling sound...I still have nightmares about it.

"I wanted to scream. I wanted to run but, it was like I was frozen in place. I hated her so much, Lacey, but I didn't want to watch her die. I don't even remember running forward or trying to get my dad off of her...just the feel of my hands getting trapped between the rope and her neck and how my dad just kept on pulling and pulling until she finally stopped moving.

"I started to cry after it was over but Dad said I shouldn't cry for her because _we_ did what we had to do...like we had killed her together...like it had been a plan between us... For a long time, everything was so twisted in my mind that I thought that it had been."

Lacey cradled her middle and paced in small circles, feeling like she might actually throw up right then. "When Jo and I came into the house, your father was there," she recalled in a tremulous tone, "He was standing over her body...like he was so devastated...like he couldn't believe what you had done. He told us to run into the kitchen and call 911 but we ran away instead." Lacey stared down at Danny with haunted eyes. "But it was him. It was him all along."

"Yes. It was."

"God! We left you alone with him, Danny!" she uttered self-deprecatingly.

"You didn't know."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Lacey cried, "You just let us all think that you had done this horrible thing! You let us _hate_ you for something you didn't do! I don't understand! Why, Danny?"

"Dad said it would destroy our family if he went to prison," Danny explained, "He said that there were people who wanted to hurt us because of what Tara had done and that he wouldn't be able to protect us if he was in prison. According to him, I was just a kid and they wouldn't give me any real time. If I told everyone that I did it, I would be protecting my family. I would be protecting him." He looked up at her with solemn eyes. "At the time, I thought I was doing the right thing."

"But he turned his back on you! He left you! Why would you keep his secret after that?"

"I started questioning him about the reason he killed Tara," Danny replied, "I doubted him. I was suspicious of his motives and I started to resent him. He stopped coming to see me after that. I always thought that it was my fault and that I had driven him away because I had stopped believing in him. After he 'died' there just didn't seem to be any point in telling the truth anymore. I had lived with the lie for so long it was starting to _feel_ real."

"Oh, Danny..."

"So, that's it. That's the whole story. There aren't any more secrets, Lacey. I've never told another living soul what I just told you."

"I can't believe this," Lacey uttered brokenly, "You live through the trauma of watching your father murder another human being and then _you_ take the punishment for the crime. No, Danny, that is _not_ it. None of this is okay."

"Who knows? Maybe I _did_ deserve it," he mumbled, "I certainly wished her dead often enough."

"Stop it! You did not _deserve_ any of this," Lacey told him fiercely. She gathered him against her then and cradled his head against her belly. Lacey stroked the loose strands of his hair, a shaky sigh escaping her when he buried his face against her hip and banded his arms around her tightly.

"Do you hate me now?" he whispered.

Lacey gently lifted his face so that he could see her eyes when she said, "If I didn't hate you when I thought you were a murderer then why would you think I could hate you now that I know the truth?"

He nuzzled his face across her belly. "I love you so much, Lacey."

She bent forward and brushed his lips in a tender kiss. "I love you." Lacey stood with him a few minutes more, content to hold him close and stroke his hair, hoping that she could somehow undo the pain he had endured for most of his life with her touch alone. Eventually, however, her need for answers compelled her to ask, "So what happens now?"

Danny reared back to regard her. "I need to know for sure if my father is alive," he said, "I need to get back to that apartment."

"Then let's go. Tonight."

They both opted to do the "responsible" thing and let their mothers know that they had no intentions of returning home that night and not to worry. Karen Desai had mostly taken the news in stride. She wasn't exactly thrilled by the idea but she didn't threaten Danny with any punishment. Instead, she made him promise to take care of Lacey and himself, to stay safe and to wear a condom. Once he had agreed to all of those things, she had given her grudging consent. Judy Porter, on the other hand, had been livid. She had been mid-rant with threats of eternal grounding when Lacey decided to hang up the phone.

"We'd better make this trip count," she informed Danny in a dire tone, "because I'm pretty sure my mother is going to place me on permanent lockdown after this."

"Are you sure you want to go?" Danny pressed, "I can do this on my own."

"I know you can. But you don't have to."

Danny offered to drive during the first leg of their journey and Lacey was more than happy to let him. After so much upheaval for one day, she was left feeling weary and distracted. She had every expectation that she would be asleep within the next half hour. In the meantime, she and Danny filled the silence with idle small talk. They conspicuously avoided talking about what would happen should Danny's theory prove true. They avoided all conversation about their mothers and the hell that would very likely have to be paid upon their return home. They were also rather skittish about discussing the unprotected sex they had engaged in earlier and the possible consequences from that thoughtless act. The only neutral subject seemed to be Danny's undeserved prison sentence and even that topic was fraught with tension.

"You should tell your mom," Lacey advised him.

"Not happening."

"Danny, come on! You've carried this secret long enough."

"The truth won't make a difference to her now."

"At least she'll know her son isn't a murderer."

"Are you saying that it would be better for her to know that her husband _was_ and that he allowed her 11 year old son to go to prison for it?"

Lacey expelled a frustrated grunt. "Okay! I see your point. But none of this is fair! You should be able to clear your name, Danny."

"The stigma will always be there whether I'm cleared or not, Lace. If I'm not a murderer then I'm the son of a murderer. That will _always_ follow me. It's done anyway. I went to prison. I did my time. I just want to put it behind me and live my life now."

"Okay," she relented gruffly, "But I hate it."

"I know you do...and I love you for it. It feels good to have someone in my corner."

"Can we, at least, tell Rico and Jo the truth?"

"Yeah. I think they should know." Having tackled that particular subject successfully and without too much drama, Danny braced up his courage to broach yet another of their taboo topics. "So...I...um...might have gotten you pregnant tonight. That's a pretty big deal."

Lacey responded with a dismissive roll of her eyes. "You did not get me pregnant."

"How do you know? It's not like I pulled out or anything...not that it would have been enough but, at least, it would have been _something_."

"The chances are so small..."

"But they still _exist_ ," he stressed meaningfully, "We should talk about it, don't you think?"

"What's the point in worrying about something that hasn't even happened yet?" Lacey considered, "If I miss my period, then we'll freak."

Danny released a self-deprecating laugh and shook his head in chagrin. "I can't believe we're actually having this conversation," he muttered, "If you are pregnant, my mom is going to kill me. That's like her worst nightmare. 'Wear a condom, Danny. Wear a condom, Danny.' That's been her mantra since _before_ she even found out we were having sex!"

Lacey cut him a sharpened glance and reared upright in her seat. "Wait a second! Your mom _knows_ we're having sex?"

"I've been sneaking over to your house in the middle of the night, Lacey. I doubt she thinks we're playing board games."

"There is a difference between having a suspicion about something and knowing it outright, Danny! Which one applies to your mom?"

"The last one."

Lacey buried her face in her hands and groaned. "Oh my god, your mom knows that I'm...that I'm..."

"...pleasuring her son, riding him like a surfboard, getting it done?" Danny provided with a cheeky smile, "Yeah, she's aware."

"I hate you." She sank down into her seat with yet another groan. "I'll never be able to look her in the eye again," Lacey lamented, "It was hard enough when she caught us kissing that day!"

"I'm pretty sure she's okay with it, Lacey...as long as we don't turn her into a grandmother."

"Stop worrying about that. It's not going to happen. Not yet anyway."

They exchanged shy smiles at the tacit admission that babies might very well be a future prospect for them. Much too soon for Lacey's taste, however, Danny was back to frowning again. "It can't happen again though. If this was a close call, it needs to be the only one."

"What are you talking about? The sex?"

"No! The lack of condom," Danny emphasized.

"I guess you're right," Lacey whispered, "But it _did_ feel really good without it."

"It felt freaking amazing!"

"But never again?"

"No."

"Unless..."

Danny perked with interest. "Unless what?"

"I could go on the pill," Lacey considered with a shrug, "Then we wouldn't have to use a condom at all."

He pretended to mull the suggestion over. "I'd be good with that."

Lacey laughed at his obviousness. "Yeah, I thought you might be."

A short time after they passed the state line, Lacey fell asleep. In the silence that ensued, Danny allowed himself to consider, for the first time since their trip began, what lay ahead of him. He was faced with the prospect of confronting his presumed dead father. The thought brought with it a plethora of conflicting emotion. Fear, dread, anger, despair, hope...happiness. There was indeed a part of him that was elated by the possibility that his father might be alive, the part of him that still naively believed they might be able to recapture the relationship they had shared during his childhood. It was the part of him that also clutched desperately to the hope that his father had a plausible explanation for everything he had done in the last five years and well before that. Albeit, it was a very small part of him, the part that hadn't been corroded by cynicism and bitterness but, it was there. Danny was hoping for the best even while he was expecting the worst.

About an hour outside of Newport, he decided to stop and refill the gas tank. He roused Lacey with a bag of Blue Ranch potato chips and a Coke. She offered him a sleepy smile of gratitude and a small kiss. "I can drive, you know," she said when he climbed back behind the wheel, "It's my turn, isn't it?"

"You should probably get in touch with your mom instead," Danny told her, "She's called like six times since you've been asleep."

It wasn't the most productive conversation. Mostly, Judy had railed at Lacey for being irresponsible and reckless while Lacey had tried to reassure her that she was being safe and that Danny would never allow anything to happen to her. The exchange deteriorated further when Judy demanded to know where she was and Lacey refused to provide an answer. Recognizing that there was little she could do to soothe her mother's frazzled nerves, Lacey merely promised that she would return home in the morning and disconnected the call.

"She's pretty frantic, huh?" Danny remarked in the tense silence that followed.

"She's so worked up about your past that she can't even hear what I'm saying."

"If it helps to know, I think your mom would be freaking out over this whether I was an ex-convict or not," he considered, "You _are_ still a minor who is planning to spend the night with her unapproved boyfriend. That's gotta be a little aggravating."

Lacey popped a chip into her mouth and regarded him with a wide, affectionate smile. "Well, I _do_ have a good reason."

"And what reason is that?"

"I'm pretty crazy about the guy."

Danny returned her smile warmly. "He's pretty crazy about you too."

The drive back to the apartment high-rise took considerably less time due to their familiarity with the route. This time around, when they buzzed into the private gate, they knew exactly whom to ask for and when they approached the security guard it was with a great deal less apprehension than they had the first time. Danny took hold of Lacey's hand and strode inside, offering the security guard an easy smile as they passed.

"I know it's late but, we're just here to see my dad," he said. He was taken aback, however, when the security guard rose to block him. Danny felt a brief trill of alarm but was careful to mask his anxiety behind a questioning look. "What is it?"

"I'm sorry to tell you this, son," the security guard said, "But your father cleared out of here early this morning. He took a few things from his apartment and left. I'm pretty sure he's gone for good."

Danny blinked at him in disbelief. "Are you sure? He was just here!"

"I'm as surprised as you are. Residents usually don't break their leases so suddenly like that but, I'm sure. Maintenance had his name removed from the mailbox this morning."

It was hard for Danny to mask his crushing disappointment over that setback. He was angry and frustrated but, most of all, he was hurt because it was evident that Vikram had somehow been tipped off to their presence. Yet, rather than sticking around to face the son he hadn't seen in three years, he ran away instead.

Danny wrestled with the feelings of worthlessness that knowledge evoked. He didn't speak again for nearly a full twenty minutes, not until he and Lacey were milling through the local Walmart for various toiletries, supplies and other items necessary for an overnight stay. "He must have known that we came looking for him before," he muttered as he and Lacey perused the aisles together, "It's the only thing that makes sense." He dropped his head forward with a humorless grunt. "I guess that answers that question."

"What question?"

"Whether or not he wanted to see me again. Obviously not."

Lacey's first and most immediate instinct was to comfort him, to pull him into her arms and hold him right there in the middle of everything. But, he was so touchy that she wasn't sure any gesture of affection would be welcomed right then. "Now what do we do?"

"I have no idea. Who knows where he's taken off! I'm probably never going to see him again."

"Danny, if your dad is really alive, then we should tell your mom or someone what we know. We can't keep investigating this on our own. I think the police should be involved, especially if we're right and he's the one who killed Regina that night."

"What's the point of telling anyone he's alive?" Danny muttered, "We'll just look like crazy people if we go to the cops without any proof! If my father doesn't want to be found, none of it matters anyway."

They found a cheap motel to bed down in for the night and, even then, Danny's brooding silence continued. He barely ate any of the snacks they'd purchased and only made a grudging attempt at conversation. After making an abrupt announcement that he was going to shower, he hopped up from his chair and sequestered himself in the bathroom. A few minutes later, Lacey heard the shower spray kick to life.

She remained seated in the center of the bed feeling helpless and alone. She didn't know what she could say to comfort him. Even after all his father had done to him and all the ways Vikram had betrayed him, it was clear to Lacey that Danny was still seeking the man's approval and love. He was yearning for Vikram's acceptance and learning that he had preferred to flee rather than staying to face his son had to feel like yet another desertion to Danny.

For the most part, her boyfriend was a resilient young man. There weren't many people who could endure what Danny had and come through it with the capacity for joy and love that he had. In his short life, he had been ignored and mistreated by the very people who had been charged to protect him and somehow he still took the burden of their mistakes upon himself. He blamed himself for Tara and he blamed himself for his father. Lacey imagined that Danny must feel that there wasn't anything worthwhile about himself at all, not if his own family rejected him. She wanted to prove to him how wrong he was.

Lacey rolled from the bed and quickly stripped out of her clothing before slipping quietly into the bathroom. The interior was balmy with thick clouds of steam. She was certain that Danny had heard her entrance but, if he had, he didn't acknowledge it. She pulled back the shower curtain and found him standing beneath the pelting spray, shoulders stooped forward, eyes closed, his long, wet hair plastered around his face. Wordlessly, Lacey climbed in behind him and encircled his waist, her nude body flush against his. She pressed her cheek against his back, ignoring the slight stiffening in his shoulders when she did so.

"I love you," she whispered, pressing a tender kiss between his shoulder blades, "This isn't _your_ failure, Danny. It's not something _you_ did. This was your father's choice and it's his loss because you are amazing and funny and decent and kind...and he missed out on the opportunity to get to know someone who is pretty incredible."

"It still hurts."

"I don't expect it not to hurt," she told him, "But you can't blame yourself anymore. You've spent too many years doing that and it needs to stop."

Danny released a shuddering breath, gradually relaxing in her embrace. "I just don't know what I did to make him stop loving me," he sniffled.

"A better question would be, what has he done to deserve _your_ love in the first place?"

At her words, he turned in her arms and pulled her tighter against him, pressing a firm kiss to her temple. "Thank you for sticking by me. Today has just been one nightmare after another and I know I haven't been the greatest company. You've put up with a lot. I'm sorry about that."

"Well, I am the world's best girlfriend."

"I mean it, Lace. You've been so great. I don't know what I would do without you."

"And you never will."

Danny hugged her hard. "I really do love you, Lacey Porter. I know I've been hard to take tonight...for the last couple of days really."

"You're entitled. Besides I'm used to you being an ass."

He grunted a short laugh and then nuzzled against her mouth in a lingering kiss. "I guess I should probably try actually washing up now," he murmured wryly.

"Good idea."

With the tension between them considerably lessened, they took turns lathering one another up, squirting each other with the tiny bottles of complimentary shampoo and conditioner, flicking each other with wet towels and generally wasting hot water in between giggling kisses and soapy caresses. Horseplay gradually segued into foreplay. The couple was fairly waterlogged by the time Danny had Lacey pinned between his body and the tiled shower wall. He buried his face in the soapy column of her neck, his slender fingers trailing across her slick center in titillating circles.

"Are...are you feeling better?" she stammered in a moan when he sank them deep.

He stroked her lazily. "Yes."

"So can we please go to bed now?"

He dragged his hand from between her legs and took them under the spray for a quick rinse. "Yeah...let's go to bed."


	27. Chapter Twenty Six

**Chapter Twenty Six**

"Did Lacey give you any idea why we _had_ to cut school just before lunch period to meet out here at the fort?" Rico grumbled, "They're having chicken enchiladas today. I love chicken enchiladas."

"Nope," Jo replied, "She just said it was important and that she and Danny would see us soon."

Around eleven o'clock that morning while she had been in the middle of Spanish class, Jo had received a cryptic text from Lacey requesting that she and Rico meet her and Danny out at the fort. While she had been rather vague about the reason, she made it clear that the need for them to meet was urgent. Jo figured that something big must be up if the frantic calls Judy Porter had placed to her father this morning had been any clue. Apparently, neither Lacey nor Danny had gone home the night before, which explained why they hadn't shown up for school that day either. Jo could only imagine that Danny had finally decided to share whatever it was he had been keeping to himself for the past two days.

In the meantime, she watched Rico pace back and forth in the small confines of the fort like a restless puppy. The atmosphere was a little weird between them. He hadn't been very forthcoming with conversation that morning. Even though they had spent a good portion of the night together in the ER following his one-sided fistfight with Tyler Louis, the unspoken implications that had developed between them after his spontaneous kiss still lingered. Rico wasn't being moody or distant with her. Instead, he seemed more awkward than usual and uncertain of how to relate to her, like he wanted to have a conversation but didn't quite know how to begin. Jo decided to help him out.

"So how's your hand doing?"

He jumped at the question, as if he hadn't been expecting her to speak at all. "The brace helps with the throbbing," he said, "Hard to believe that it was only sprained."

"Yeah, with the way you were carrying on last night I was sure you'd broken every bone in your hand."

"Well, the nurse did say that sprains typically hurt worse than breaks." He cleared his throat several times in growing discomfiture. "And...well...I don't really have a very high threshold for pain."

"You don't say," Jo teased softly, "All that screaming you did for a pain shot definitely didn't give that away."

"Haha, Jo."

Before an uncomfortable silence could descend between them once more and choke out the amiable camaraderie they were starting to establish, Jo asked rather tentatively, "So...are we going to talk about what happened or is it just going to stay one of those elephant in the room kind of things?"

Rico suddenly became fascinated with the dead leaves beneath his feet, a convenient excuse for not meeting her gaze directly. "What's to talk about? I did something stupid and made a complete jackass out of myself. I'm thoroughly humiliated. I'd love to wear a paper bag over my head symbolizing my shame but somehow that would only make things worse. Really, I was kind of hoping you'd just, you know...forget it ever happened."

"That's a little difficult. You did kiss me."

"Right," Rico muttered.

"And then you proceeded to tell me that you had feelings for me."

"Yeah...I did kind of do that too, didn't I?"

"Yep. You did."

"I guess that makes things a little awkward, huh?"

"Pretty much," Jo confirmed blandly, "Where are we supposed to go from here, Rico?"

"I...I don't know..." he stammered out in a rush, "...I didn't really think past your lips and how pink they were and how I wondered if they were as soft as they looked..."

Jo's eyes widened at his rhapsodized description of her mouth. "Oh...okay." She shifted from one foot to the other, dropping her eyes in nervous dismay. "Um...how long have you felt like this?"

"Remember when we went to that math tournament in Poughkeepsie?" he asked. Jo jerked a nod. "Yeah, about since then..."

"That was like _last year_ , Rico!" she burst out in disbelief, "You've felt this way for me for an entire year?"

"T-Technically it began as infatuation," he clarified, "And from there it blossomed into a full-fledged crush and...uh...just in the last six months...it's become something closer to...um...uh...well..."

"Are you saying you're in love with me?" Jo gasped in disbelief.

Rico cleared his throat again. "I think that would be a fairly accurate description."

Jo sank down onto an overturned box crate because her knees would no longer support her. "You're in love with me?" she uttered again around the lump of tears forming in her throat, "Why?"

"Why not?" he countered softly, "You're one of the bravest people I know, Jo Marie Masterson. You're beautiful and smart and compassionate and tough and...wonderful. Why wouldn't I fall in love with you?"

"I really wish you didn't feel this way," she lamented.

Rico shrank inside himself with her words, suddenly overwhelmed with the instinct to run. Her rejection he could deal with but the idea that his feelings repulsed her was too much to bear. "Oh...oh...oh, I get it. Because you don't feel the same about me?"

"Because it complicates _everything_ ," Jo cried mournfully.

Her answer surprised him and, rather than running, Rico found himself stepping closer to her with a puzzled frown because she didn't sound so repulsed after all. He stooped down in front of her, ducking his head lower so that he could see her eyes behind the curly, strawberry blond curtain of her hair. "What exactly does that mean, Jo?"

She never had the opportunity to answer because Danny and Lacey picked that exact moment to duck inside the fort. Jo and Rico swiftly scrambled away from each other as if they were avoiding a random lightning strike. Rico's inexplicable fascination with the tree trunk jutting up through the middle fort and Jo's sudden absorption in her fingernails only made their actions all the more conspicuous. Danny bounced a curious glance between them.

"Hey, you two," he greeted slowly, "Did we walk in on something here?"

"Of course not!" Rico protested unconvincingly, "Jo had something in her eye...like an eyelash and I was assisting her in extracting it...the...uh...you know...the eyelash...from her eye..."

Lacey cut a skeptical look over at Jo, who was blushing furiously. "Ooo...kay."

Resisting the urge to squirm under Lacey's probing stare and desperate to change the subject, Jo latched on to the first thing she could think of when she glanced up and took in Danny and Lacey's ramshackle appearances. "Whoa. You two look rough."

That was an understatement. They both looked beyond exhausted with dark rings of fatigue beneath their eyes and their clothing hopelessly wrinkled. Lacey's usually perfectly coiffed hair was a fluffy mess of haphazard, tight curls which was secured back from her face in a frizzy ponytail. Her face was devoid of makeup and drawn with weariness. Danny looked equally haggard. His eyes were heavy and hooded, his own hair tied in a messy topknot.

Jo grimaced. "What happened to you?"

Danny took several stumbling steps and flopped down onto the nearest sleeping bag. "We've had about six hours of sleep between us in the last 36 hours," he said, closing his eyes. He punctuated that declaration with a broad yawn. "I'm wiped."

Rico leaned against the tree, observing his drooping friends with speculative eyes. "Where have you two been all night?"

"Newport," Lacey sighed, "We went back to the apartment."

Jo frowned at the disclosure. "Why? We didn't find anything the first time around. What was the point of going back there?"

Lacey and Danny exchanged a silent look of mutual understanding before Lacey stated without preamble, "We think Danny's dad is alive."

Rico burst out laughing only to immediately sober when he realized that Danny and Lacey weren't joking. "Wait. What?"

Jo had a similar reaction. "Are you guys serious?"

Danny rolled upright with a tired sigh. "It's a long story," he told him, "You might as well make yourselves comfortable because this is going to take a while..."

Forty-five minutes later, Danny had not only explained to them how he and Lacey had arrived at the conclusion that his father was alive but also how he had served a five year sentence for a murder he'd never committed. Suffice it to say, his revelations left Jo and Rico a bit shell-shocked in the aftermath. However, Rico recovered more quickly than Jo. He blinked several times in an effort to gather his scattered thoughts.

"Okay, so let me get this straight," he began slowly, "You never killed your aunt. Your dad committed the murder and you went to prison for his crime. Now, he has possibly killed again and is apparently trying to frame you for that murder too. Do I have this straight?"

"That's the gist of it," Danny replied. He looked over to Jo, who had remained strangely quiet throughout his entire tale. She sat with her head bent so that he couldn't see her eyes but, the trembling in her body was unmistakable. "Well..." he prompted softly, half expecting her rejection for the constant lies he'd been spinning, "Aren't you going to say something?"

He was surprised when she suddenly moved from her perch and lurched forward to throw her arms around him in a tight hug. Relieved, Danny hugged her back just as tightly. "I can't believe you went through all of that on your own," she whispered into his shoulder, her words made rough with unshed tears, "When I think about how scared you must have been and how alone you must have felt, it makes me feel sick! I'm so sorry I stopped believing in you."

"It doesn't matter," he whispered back, "You believe in me now and that's enough."

Rico surged to his feet with a fresh round of frantic pacing as the weight of what they were facing settled on him heavily. "We've got to go to Chief Masterson with this," he said, "There's no other choice. You need to tell him everything you just told us."

"And that's going to do what?" Danny challenged, pulling himself from Jo's embrace, "Right now, all I have is my word, which is not credible in the least!"

Jo reached over and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "We can make my dad believe you."

"No. I already told Lacey and now I'm telling you. I just want to leave it."

"Danny, you went to jail over this!" Jo balked, "People think you're a murderer! You can't let that stand!"

"At this point, the truth would cause more damage."

Rico tipped back his head with a frustrated groan. "And this is where you take a wrong turn every time," he mumbled, "Why is the truth always the _last_ option with you?"

Lacey chose that moment to speak up for the first time since the entire discussion began. "Guys, stop hammering at him," she interjected quietly, meeting Danny's eyes in yet another profound look of mutual understanding, "This is what he wants. It's _his_ choice. We need to respect it." Danny mouthed a grateful "thank you" when she finished speaking.

Jo gritted her teeth in aggravation. "So we're just supposed to pretend like we don't know that Vikram Desai is a cold-blooded murderer twice over and that he might very well be alive?"

Danny sighed. "Jo, as far as the rest of this community believes, Vikram Desai is dead. We don't have any proof that he's alive, much less that he killed Regina Crane. And now he's gone and we have no idea where he's run. We don't really have a whole lot of choice in the matter."

"This isn't fair to you!" Jo cried.

Lacey bobbed a nod of agreement. "You're right. It's not fair. But this is what we're dealing with so we gotta make the best of it."

"You guys can't breathe a word about what I just told you," Danny admonished them gravely, "I mean it. Everything about my aunt and my dad stays in this fort. Promise me." It was clear from their protests that neither Jo nor Rico were onboard with that idea at all but, out of respect for Danny, they both gave their grudging consent to keep silent. Mollified, Danny murmured his gratitude and wilted back against the sleeping bag. In hopes of lightening the somber mood that pervaded, he then asked the next most pertinent question on his mind, "Rico, what happened to your hand?"

Jo and Rico darted nervous glances at each other. Rico rubbed self-consciously at his brace. "It...it's a long story."

The silent exchange between Jo and Rico didn't go unnoticed by Lacey. She suspected that there were definitely some interesting twists involved in that "long story" but she didn't really have the time to ferret them out. Lacey made a mental note to grill Jo about it later on.

"I'd be interested in hearing the details to that story," she said, "But some other time. Right now, I need to get home and face my mother's wrath."

Danny lifted his head with a despondent pout. "Really? Is it time for that already? Can't we have a nap first?"

"Nope. Might as well get this over with."

When they pulled in front of Danny's house an hour later, Lacey lost a good deal of her militant resolve when she spied her mother's vehicle parked in the Desai driveway. "That's so great..." she muttered weakly, "Apparently, my mom's here."

"Maybe you shouldn't have turned off your cell phone last night," Danny considered in hindsight.

"She would have kept on calling to harass me if I hadn't," Lacey replied, "That would have spoiled the mood a little, don't you think?"

Her implicit reminder that they'd spent practically the entire night exploring the various ways to give each other orgasms deflated Danny's argument rather quickly. Still, he couldn't blame Lacey's mother for being upset and he very well knew their actions hadn't helped to alleviate her stress levels. He and Lacey had lingered in that seedy little motel room for much longer than necessary. They had both been highly reluctant to leave that morning. It had felt so right waking up next to one another, eating a sugary breakfast from the vending machine and sharing the sink while they brushed their teeth. Danny had even enjoyed watching Lacey attempt to coax her wild shock of hair into some semblance of order.

"This is the reality of dating a black girl," she had informed him crisply, "I got my hair wet for you last night, Danny. That's love."

After giving himself over to a fit of laughter, he had favored her with an adoring smile, absolutely certain that he couldn't possibly love her more than he did in that moment. "Thank you."

She'd bent down to peck his lips with a small smile. "You're welcome."

Those eight hours of domestic bliss that he had spent with her in that tiny, godforsaken room had been some of the happiest and most normal that he had ever experienced in his life. Now that he had enjoyed just a small taste of what living with Lacey Porter might be like, Danny realized he was hungry for more of it. He could probably spend the rest of his life watching her go through her mundane morning routine and be perfectly content.

Lacey noticed the lopsided smile playing at the corners of his mouth and scowled. "We're about to face imminent doom and you're over there grinning. What's up with that?"

He turned his head to regard her with an openly besotted expression. "What can I say? You make me really happy."

She responded to those sweet words with a disgusted grunt. "Ugh. Don't be charming right now. I'm too anxious."

"What's the worst that can happen?"

"She tries to keep me from seeing you ever again," Lacey pronounced direly.

"She's done that already...and here we are."

"All I know is that if she tries to keep us apart that's going to be a huge problem for me."

"Let's try to remember that she has a reason to be upset," Danny reminded her pragmatically.

"The only reason she's being so resistant is because she thinks you're a murderer...and you're not."

"Lacey, you can't tell her," he reminded her softly, "You know that."

"I know. It's just so frustrating. You shouldn't have to live with the stigma when you haven't done anything wrong!"

He reached over to grasp hold of her hand in a reassuring squeeze. "Come on. We can do this together."

They stepped up onto the porch hand in hand, pausing to inhale a collective breath before stepping through the front door. He was going to call out for his mother but that proved to be unnecessary. They hadn't even cleared the threshold before Karen came rushing into the foyer with a relieved gasp. "Oh, thank goodness you're both okay!" she cried, throwing her arms around Danny and hugging him hard, "I was so worried! When you said you would be back in the morning, I was expecting you a little earlier than three o'clock in the afternoon!"

Danny didn't really have time to react to that admonishment because Lacey's parents had followed closely behind his mother and were already converging on Lacey with grateful embraces of their own. Lacey barely registered their mutual hold on her because she was too dazed by her father's presence to process much else. "Daddy?" she uttered in stunned disbelief, "Aren't you supposed to be in Seattle? What are you doing here?"

Judy reared back at that moment, veering crazily from tearful gratitude to blazing wrath in under a second. "I have a better question, young lady!" she snapped, "Where the hell have you been all night?"

"I told you when I called before," Lacey replied in a meek, little voice, "I was with Danny."

"Where? In Pakistan?" her mother bit out sarcastically, "We've looked all over Green Grove for you two so you definitely weren't here!"

Unable to watch Lacey get grilled for his events he had set in motion, Danny hesitantly volunteered, "Um...we weren't in Green Grove last night. I thought it would be nice to get out of town for a while. It was completely my idea."

Karen sighed heavily. "Okay, you two. Into the living room. I think it's time we set some ground rules." Danny and Lacey warily settled down on the sofa side by side and regarded their parents, mentally preparing for the drama they knew was coming. Karen was the first to speak. "So...we understand that you both have strong feelings for each other _but_ , there are some concerns."

"Namely your past, Danny," Samuel Porter interjected gruffly, "I'm not comfortable with the idea of you being involved with my daughter. In fact, when Judy called me this morning, frantic and hysterical because she had no idea where Lacey was, my mind automatically veered to the worst case scenario. I jumped on the first flight out here."

Lacey released a short, derisive laugh. "What are you saying, Daddy? Did you actually fly all this way because you thought Danny had murdered me and buried me in the woods somewhere? Do you know how ridiculous that sounds? Though it's nice to know that my possible death was enough to remind you that you had a daughter!"

Judy regarded her with a dangerous glower. "Enough with the sass from you! This isn't a joke, Lacey. Everyone in this room knows that Danny is capable of harming someone and worse. Our fears are valid. When we don't hear from you all night long and then you don't show up when _you_ said you would, we're going to worry under normal circumstances, let alone when you're out keeping time with a murderer!"

"Would you please stop calling him that? He's not capable of hurting me or anyone else for that matter," Lacey retorted through clenched teeth, "And if you took the time to actually get to _know_ him, you would realize that."

Sensing her escalating tension and wanting to soothe her before she said something she couldn't take back, Danny grabbed hold of Lacey's hand and linked his fingers with hers. That small gesture of affection wasn't lost on any of their parents. Unfortunately, that bit of intimacy only increased the Porters uneasiness while simultaneously leaving Karen thoroughly dejected because she knew, despite how fiercely Danny loved her, that Lacey's parents would never accept them being together.

Lacey took several restorative breaths before she spoke again. Giving vent to her anger and frustration would only do more harm than good. She recognized the importance of remaining calm even as her self-control began to slip in inches. "Listen, Mom..." she implored in an even tone, "I understand that you're mad about last night but, you never seemed to have this many issues when I stayed out late with Archie. I feel like you're flipping out over nothing."

"First of all, Archie wasn't a convicted felon," Judy retorted tartly, "Secondly, you never stayed out all night with him. If you had, we'd most definitely be having this same conversation!"

"Wow. It's always going to come back to that with you, isn't it, Mom? You just can't let go of Danny's past!" The aforementioned tried not to squirm too much while the Porter women argued about him as if he wasn't sitting there listening to every word.

"Does that really surprise you?" Judy challenged, "He went to prison for _murder_ , Lacey. You seem to conveniently forget that fact again and again."

"I haven't forgotten," Lacey replied in a tight voice, "But that's not who he is now and really not who he _was_ either. Danny would never do anything to hurt me. I trust him."

Her mother scoffed. "That's not exactly a ringing endorsement, sweetheart, given the fact your judgment has been extremely lacking lately."

"Why?" Lacey cried, "Because I spent the night with my boyfriend? Because I'm in love and I act like it? Really, that's the only thing I'm guilty of here and that's what this really comes down to for you, right? You don't like the fact that I'm having sex with him!"

Danny dropped his head into his hands with an abashed groan while his mother did her best to play peacekeeper. Karen held up her hands in a bid for silence when it was clear the discussion was headed in an unpleasant direction. "I think we should bring this down a notch before matters escalate out of control," she advised calmly, "We need to keep this civil."

Judy pinned with her a withering glare. "Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" she bit out, "You've known that they've been sleeping together for weeks and you did nothing to stop it! What kind of mother are you?"

"What would you have had me do, Judy?" Karen fired back, "Should I have chained him to the house? Or barred Lacey from coming here? It wouldn't have done any good! They were going to find a way to see each other whether we condoned it or not!"

"I don't like this, Karen! I don't like what's happening one bit!"

"Neither do I!" Karen flared, "This isn't an ideal situation for me either! I want my son to be happy! He deserves that! He's _earned_ that right! But he can't have a normal life without people like you constantly judging him and blaming him for the past!"

Sam drew himself upright and bellowed, "Can you really fault us for that? The boy went to prison for murder! Who in their right mind would want their child involved with someone like that?"

Karen never had an opportunity to make her frigid retort because Lacey was already laying into him. "First of all, _you_ can stay out of this!" she cried angrily, "I can deal with Mom being all over me because, frankly, she has the right! But _you_? I don't think so! You don't get to weigh in! You don't get to judge Danny or me!"

Danny reached over to massage her shoulder. "Lacey, it's okay. Let them get it out. They have a right to feel the way they feel."

"No, it's not okay," she hissed under her breath, "And you know why!"

"Don't...please, Lacey, let it go..." he pleaded with her softly.

She bit down against her angry protest and, instead, turned her attention back to her parents, the last of her diplomacy leaking from her in an infuriated grunt. "Since when are you two on the same page about anything?" she demanded. She fixed Judy with an accusing glare. "Why did you call him? You've barely spoken a world to each other since the divorce and now you're coming together for 'my best interest?' It's a joke, Mom!"

Judy glowered at her, quelling the urge to shake her senseless. "See this is the problem with you, Lacey," she snapped, "You have everything backwards. _We_ don't owe you any explanations right now! You're the one who needs to explain yourself!"

"You want me to justify my feelings for Danny or beg you for permission to see him and I'm not going to do either one," Lacey scoffed, "You wanna ground me for staying out all night? Go right ahead. Give me a curfew. Set limits on my phone time. Whatever you need to do. But you're _not_ going to keep us from being together. So save your breath."

Judy threw up her hands in frustrated anger. "Oh my god, girl, I cannot deal with you right now."

Recognizing that Judy had reached a point where she could no longer communicate with Lacey in a calm and reasonable manner, Karen decided to try her hand at appealing to the stubborn teen instead. "Lacey, listen to me, sweetheart," she began magnanimously, "I realize that you and Danny have endured so much more than most teenagers your age and, based on your experiences, I'm sure you both probably feel like you're already adults. But you're not. You're children. You're _our_ children and, as such, you're still under _our_ authority. You don't get to stay out all night because you want to and you don't get to leave the city because you want to."

She fixed her son with a steely glare. "Danny, you're still on probation. I don't know where you two went last night but if it was beyond the state line, you know you could have been arrested, right?"

Danny averted his eyes, darting a nervous glance over at Lacey. "Right."

"So where did you go?" Karen pressed calmly.

He and Lacey traded yet another furtive look, the unspoken agreement to hold off on the complete truth tacit between them. "We got a motel room outside of town and we stayed the night there," he said finally, "I wanted to be someplace with her where no one could find us. That's it."

Samuel Porter's reaction to that was swift and filled with affronted bluster. He bit out a stinging curse and surged to his feet as if he meant to charge Danny. Karen quickly stepped in his path, her expression clearly stating that if he wanted to get to her son then he was going to have to go through her. Sam bellowed at Danny over her shoulder.

"You little punk," he ground out, "I don't appreciate you disrespecting my daughter!"

Lacey jumped to her feet as well. "Excuse me?" she exploded indignantly, "I haven't spoken to you except for a handful of times since I was fifteen years old! You have some nerve thinking you can just stroll in here and make some play at 'defending my honor!' Danny didn't disrespect me! _You_ did that when you decided you couldn't be bothered with being a parent anymore!"

Danny reached over to tug on her wrist, gently coaxing her back into her seat. It took every ounce of cool reserve Danny had to keep from flying off the handle right along with Lacey, especially in the face of the Porters' wholehearted contempt for him. But he knew if they both gave into their anger and fear and became defensive then they would never convince their parents to back off.

"Mr. Porter, I would never hurt Lacey or disrespect her," he said sincerely, "I love her. All we want to do is be together."

Judy Porter shook her head in dismissal, visibly uncomfortable with the notion. "I absolutely cannot condone that," she uttered, "Danny, I don't doubt that you're trying to make a new life for yourself and I applaud that. I truly do and I wish you the best. But you are _not_ who I want for my daughter."

Her words, while free of disdain, still packed a powerful and painful wallop. Danny had a hard time forming words due to the sudden burning in his chest. "I'm...um...I'm sorry to hear that, Mrs. Porter."

Recognizing the hurt in his tone, Lacey too her turn at comforting him then. She looped her hand tightly with his and regarded her mother with an implacable stare. "It really doesn't matter what you want, Mom. Danny is who _I_ want and who _I_ choose," she stated calmly, "And I know that it's hard for you to accept my feelings for him _but_...I really hope you can find a way to do that because I love him. He means everything to me."

That quiet admission only seemed to ramp up the already mounting tension in the room. Lacey's agitation only grew when she noticed her parents bouncing anxious looks back and forth between each other as if they were hatching some secret plan. She knew intuitively that she wasn't going to like whatever was coming next.

Judy nudged Sam impatiently. "Go on. You should tell her now."

"Tell me what?" Lacey demanded warily.

"Your mother and I have been talking at length about this situation," Sam began haltingly, "and we think it would be a good idea if you came to stay with me in Seattle for a little while."

Her response to that came tumbling from her lips before she had a chance to run it through a filter. "Like hell I will!"

"Lacey Porter, I swear to God," her mother bit out in an infuriated hiss, her tenuous control on her temper lost completely, "If you don't stop with that smart mouth of yours, I will smack the living hell out of you!" Lacey mutinously snapped her mouth shut, lower lip trembling with frustration and rage. "Now, I have tried to be patient with you," Judy sighed wearily, "I've given you the benefit of the doubt. I've tried giving you your space. I've tried reasoning with you. I've punished you. I've threatened you. I've begged you! I don't what else I can do at this point."

"Just let me be with him," Lacey sniffled, "That's all I want."

"No. No, Lacey," Judy replied firmly, "That's not going to happen and I'm going to tell you why. You don't see how dangerous and unhealthy this relationship is. You don't see how this could potentially harm you but, I do, baby. I see everything that you're blinded to right now. And I'm not going to stand by and watch you destroy your life. I have to act in your best interest and if that means sending you 3000 miles away to stay with your father, then I'm going to do that! I'm going to do whatever it takes!"

"You don't have to go that far, Mrs. Porter!" Danny interrupted in strident protest, "I won't see her anymore! Just...please, don't send her away!"

Lacey swiveled to face him with a betrayed expression. "What are you saying? No! I don't want that!"

"Your whole life is here, Lacey! I don't want you to have to go away because of me!"

She stumbled to her feet, yanking her hand from his grasp as she did so. "Well, I'm not agreeing to that so you can forget it!" she snapped before pinning her parents with a snarling scowl, "And I'm not going to Seattle either! I don't care what either of you say!"

Lacey didn't wait around to gauge their reactions to her words. Ignoring Danny's pleas for her to wait, she ran from the living room with the single focus of jumping in her car and driving as far and as fast away from that house as she could. Danny was close on her heels, reaching her just as she flung open the front door to leave. They both were brought to a grinding halt by the sight of Kyle Masterson and several of his deputies standing on the porch like a barricade. Lacey glared at him with a haughty expression but Danny confronted the indomitable police chief with a resigned sigh.

"Chief Masterson," he said in greeting, "You have impeccable timing as always, sir. I can only assume you're here on official business right now. How can I help you? Here to question me again?"

"No, I'm not here to question you, Danny. I'm here to issue a warrant for your arrest," Masterson replied gravely, "Can you please turn around? I have to cuff you."

Exasperated, Lacey pinned him with narrowed eyes. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me! You're arresting him? For what?"

"The murder of Regina Crane."


	28. Chapter Twenty Seven

**Chapter Twenty Seven**

"They have solid evidence linking him to the crime scene."

Lacey stopped prowling the fort long enough to throw Jo an irate, incredulous glower. "Evidence? What kind of evidence?"

"Apparently, they found his fingerprints in places where they _shouldn't_ have been..." Jo revealed reluctantly, "...like extremely close to where her body was found, which makes sense because he was there that night but...doesn't look so good for proving his innocence." When Lacey opened her mouth to bombard her with more questions, Jo staved off the verbal assault with a quick slicing gesture across her neck. "Don't grill me about anything else, Lacey!" she cried in warning, "That's all I could find out by eavesdropping. My dad is being really tightlipped about everything. What I do know is that this time it's serious and Danny's probably going to spend the entire weekend in the county lockup."

"What about bail?" Lacey pressed anxiously, "Can he make it?"

"If the judge grants it, and there's a chance he won't," Jo said, "It's probably going to be _really_ high. I don't know if Mrs. Desai has that kind of cash."

Lacey whimpered, her heart fluttering with rising panic. "Maybe we should go to your dad and tell him the whole truth about what happened that night," she considered desperately, "Maybe if we-,"

"-No, Lacey," Jo interrupted firmly, "This has gotten too out of control. If we tell my dad that Danny was there the night Regina was killed, it's over. He's on a mission now. He'll use that information to make sure Danny is convicted. I know it. I'm scared that Danny is going to go back to prison and, this time, I don't think he's getting out."

With a shuddering cry, Lacey dropped down onto an overturned crate and buried her face in her hands. "God, this is a nightmare..."

"What are you going to do?" Jo whispered.

"I don't know," Lacey mumbled wearily, "I guess I'm going to be living out of my car for the foreseeable future because I can't go home. I haven't seen my parents since Danny got arrested but I'm pretty sure they think this confirms everything they already believe about him." She dropped her shoulders forward. "I can't deal with them right now."

"I can have Rico bring some more supplies out here," Jo offered, "Don't spend the night in your car again. It's not safe. We've got the sleeping bags. We can bunk in the fort for now."

"We?" Lacey echoed dully.

"You don't think I'm going to leave you alone out here, do you?"

Lacey rose then and threw her arms around Jo in a grateful hug. "If I had known 24 hours ago that our lives were going to turn upside down like this, Danny and I would have never come back from Newport."

There was a certain isolation provided by the fort. Jo and Lacey were shielded from the news reports and media hype because they were solely focused on getting the fort prepared for their impending stay. They busied themselves by tucking away the box containing Regina's things and tidying up the small space as best they could. Neither of them spoke much about Danny but it was clear from their distraction and moody silence that he was the subject foremost on both of their minds.

Dusk was approaching when Jo began to worry about Rico. She had texted him earlier about bringing more food and firewood to the fort and he'd responded that he would be there as soon as he was able. However, with the evening hour swiftly approaching and still no sign of him, Jo was becoming increasingly anxious. She shuffled to the fort entrance for the sixth time in a ten minute span, scanning the dense woods beyond for some sign of Rico.

"Where is he?" she mumbled to herself, "It's not like him to be late."

"What did you ask him to bring?" Lacey wondered, "An entire supermarket aisle?"

Jo pivoted to face her with a pensive frown. "Maybe I should have been more specific about what name brands I wanted. He can get hung up on that sort of thing." She resumed her earlier perch and began nervously jostling her knee. "Quick, distract me with something," she begged Lacey, "Or I'm going to drive myself crazy."

"Distract you with what?"

"I don't know! _Something!_ If you don't start talking, my mind is going to start turning over gruesome, 'what if' possibilities! You don't want me to go there."

"Okay...you never told us what happened to Rico's hand," Lacey considered with half-hearted interest.

"Are you sure you want to hear this? I know you have other things on your mind, Lacey."

"I need the distraction too, Jo."

"Um...he got into a fight with Tyler Louis the night of his birthday party," Jo confessed, an ironic smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

That was enough to momentarily shake Lacey from her self-imposed funk. "He did what?"

"He was attempting to defend my honor and took a swing at Tyler," Jo explained, "Which ended up in a sprained hand, two punches to the gut and one dirty kick after the fact. He's all bruised up now. It was pretty awful at the time. But then, after it was all over, he had to go and kiss me."

"Wait! Who kissed you? Rico?"

"Yeah. He told me that he was in love with me."

"Oh wow, that's huge," Lacey gasped softly, "I knew he had feelings for you but I didn't know they were _that_ serious." She surveyed Jo with a searching look. "How do you feel about it?"

"Confused. Annoyed. Scared."

"You don't like him that way," Lacey concluded with a hint of sadness.

"I don't know how I feel," Jo whispered, "When he kissed me, I can't deny that I felt _something_ which was a hell of a lot more than I felt when Tyler Louis kissed me."

Lacey blinked at her incredulously. "What? I think I missed part of this story. Tyler Louis kissed you?"

Jo shuddered and grimaced. "Yeah, and it was awful! Trust me."

"But Rico's kiss wasn't awful?"

A reluctant smile ghosted her lips. "No, it wasn't awful," Jo whispered, "It was actually sort of, kind of...nice."

"You _do_ like him," Lacey concluded in a happy rush of breath, "Then what's the problem?"

"Couples break up, Lacey. Friendship is forever."

Lacey opened her mouth to remind Jo that friendship wasn't always a guarantee either but the words were abruptly snatched from her throat in a startled scream when Rico abruptly burst inside the fort. "Come on! Get up!" he ordered frantically, already rushing inside to gather up their scattered belongings, "We gotta go!"

"Go where?" Jo demanded, dogging his heels with a deep frown, "Where the hell have you been? I was going nuts!"

"No time to explain!" he burst out in a breathless jumble, "The cops are crawling through these woods looking for you and Lacey! We gotta go now!"

After making a mad grab for the essentials, the three took off through the woods in the opposite direction of the search party. Fortunately for Lacey and Jo, they had intimate knowledge of that area and navigating their way through the trees and dense foliage even with the descending night wasn't much of a problem for them. What little they were able to glean from Rico during their flight essentially boiled down to their parents being frenzied over their absence and Lacey's car being discovered in the parking lot of McNally Park a few hours earlier. After that, it was easy for the adults to conclude that the girls might be hiding out in the woods somewhere.

Rico had possessed enough forethought to borrow his mother's car and park two streets away before making a dash on foot to warn the girls about what was coming. None of them took an easy breath until, at last, they had burst into a clearing on the opposite side of the park's entrance. Even then the situation remained tense as they had little choice but to double back, taking the long way around by several streets in order to avoid detection by the cops and reach Rico's car.

"What now?" Jo demanded when they had found relative safety in the interior of his mother's minivan.

"There's someplace I can take you for now," Rico told them, "But it's gotta be super temporary until we figure out what our next move will be."

Lacey squinted at him in confusion. "What move? What are we supposed to figure out?"

"You'll see when we get there," Rico replied, "In the meantime, keep your head down."

It was a stressful, twenty minute drive with Lacey and Jo crouched down low in their seats, both girls certain that they would be busted by the cops and dragged back to their parents at any given moment. When the car finally came to a stop, Jo ventured a careful peek over the edge of the window, only to scowl in exasperation when she realized where they were. She shot Rico a narrowed look.

"You brought us back to your house?" she huffed incredulously.

"Not my house, my grandpa's old guest house," Rico clarified, "No one's been up there since he died. It's pretty secure for now."

With exaggerated stealth, Rico smuggled the girls up the back steps to the guest house, acutely aware of his family milling about in their own home approximately 500 feet away. His bulky wrist splint caused him to fumble around with the key for a few moments, which only increased both his and the girls' jumpiness. Once he had opened the door, he quickly shooed the girls inside and then followed behind them. Lacey's intention to question him again was forgotten completely when she caught sight of Danny standing in the middle of the living room.

She launched herself forward with a small cry and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him hard. He returned her embrace fiercely, burrowing his face into the crook of her neck and rocking back and forth with her in uncontained emotion. Jo stared at Rico with a mixture of gratitude, disbelief and awe. "You brought him here?" she asked softly.

"He called me as soon as he made bail."

Lacey reared back to regard Danny with darting eyes. "I can't believe they let you out. I was sure you were going to be in jail until your hearing."

"I thought so too," he said, "But apparently the judge didn't think it was appropriate for a 16 year old to spend the weekend in jail with grown, hardened criminals, so he let my mom post bail."

Jo dropped down into a nearby chair, exhausted in the wake of so much tension. "What happened, Danny?" she asked, "I know my dad said something about fingerprints but, unless we're talking a murder weapon, I don't understand how that's enough to arrest you."

"Apparently, when I knelt down to check Regina's pulse, I must have braced my hand on the coffee table as I got up," Danny explained, "They also found a few partial prints from when I struggled with the killer. The case is mostly circumstantial but...it places me where I shouldn't have been and it looks bad."

Lacey reflexively tightened her grip on him. "So what are you going to do?"

"I think it's pretty much a given that I'm going to go back to prison," he replied grimly, "My mom wants me to run. She's already put together a 'go pack' and everything."

"What?" Lacey and Jo gasped simultaneously.

"I'm not going to do it! She could lose everything if I run," Danny fretted, "I don't know what I'm going to do but, I don't think I can do that."

Rico shifted around nervously, in between peeking furtive glances through the curtain covered window that overlooked his driveway. "Okay, well...I don't want to rush you, Danny, but you gotta decide soon," he pressed, "It's only a matter of time before Chief Masterson comes back over here to question me about Jo."

"I know."

Lacey threw a frantic glance at Danny. "Then you gotta go. If your mom thinks you should run, then you should run."

"But she'll lose the house. She won't be left with anything if I skip bail, Lacey! I can't do that to her!"

Jo came to stand beside him and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Obviously your mom was aware of the risk and she was willing to take it anyway," she advised him softly, "If you don't want to go back to prison, you have to leave Green Grove, Danny."

"And I'm going to come with you," Lacey decided impulsively.

Danny shook his head wildly. "No, Lacey! You can't."

"I told you I would stick by you, Danny, and I meant every word," she declared, "If you run, I run. It's as simple as that."

"What about your parents?" he argued, "They are going to go nuts and you know it."

"I'm not letting you go alone," she maintained stubbornly, "We promised that we would stand by one another no matter what and I'm not breaking my promise, okay!"

"She's right, Danny," Jo added softly, "We did promise. Which is why, I'm going too."

Danny didn't have a chance to respond to that because Rico was already exploding with an incredulous, " _What?_ " He rushed forward in a flurry of panic. "Jo, you can't be serious!"

"As a heart attack," she stated in an indissoluble tone, "The first time this happened, I was too young and too helpless to do anything and my best friend went to prison for _five years_ for a crime he didn't commit. I couldn't stand by Danny then but, I can do it now. And I will."

"That's crazy!" Rico burst out, "What you're proposing to do is _crazy_!"

"Maybe so...but I'm doing it."

"Then I'm in too!" Rico decided capriciously.

It was now Jo, Danny and Lacey's turn to respond with a disbelieving, "What?"

"If Jo goes, I go!" When both Danny and Lacey made a face at him, Rico wrongly assumed it was due to his motives. "Not that I'm unwilling to risk myself for you or anything," he rushed to reassure Danny, "But...well...it's Jo. I gotta keep her safe. I'm sure you know what that's like."

Danny slid a meaningful glance over at Lacey. "Yeah. I get it."

Lacey responded to their masculine posturing with an annoyed eye roll. "As touching as all this male bonding is, Rico cannot go with us."

"Why not?" Jo demanded, "He's risked just as much as everyone else here!"

"Don't you think that's going to be a little conspicuous, Jo, the four of us traveling together? We're going on the run! The point is to _avoid_ attention, not _attract_ it!"

Danny nodded his agreement. "She has a point, Jo. This isn't a field trip," he stated softly, "When I leave Green Grove, I'll be a wanted fugitive. My life, as I know it now, will be over. If you come with me, then you'll make yourselves fugitives too. Is that what you really want?"

Rico, Lacey and Jo exchanged a silent look amongst themselves, carefully considering the weight of Danny's words and the implicit warning they held. After a few moments, the three came to a mutual agreement without ever speaking a word. Lacey nodded in answer to Danny's question without hesitation. "Yes. That's what we really want."

He groaned in consternation but there was no denying that he was grateful for their unflagging support. "You guys are completely insane," he mumbled.

Jo didn't bother to argue that point and instead asked, "So what do we do now?"

"My mom gave me some money before I left home and some directions to a cabin in the Poconos of all places," Danny said, "Apparently, it's some place way up in the mountains and she says I should be safe there in the meantime."

"I didn't know your parents had a cabin," Jo replied.

"Neither did I. I guess it was some timeshare thing they got involved in when they were on their honeymoon. We've never actually gone there before. My mom never liked the woods. She was supposed to sell it years ago but she said she never got around to it."

Jo tipped her head in consideration. "I suppose that would be as good a place as any to hide."

Lacey expelled a shaky sigh. "Then I guess we're going to that cabin. That only leaves the question of how we're going to get there."

"We definitely can't take my mom's minivan," Rico considered, "I don't think she would approve of this particular road trip...or any road trip involving you at all, Danny. No offense."

"None taken. Don't worry about it, Rico," he said, "I know a guy."

Rico groaned at the reassurance. "Why doesn't that bring me comfort?"

Under the cloak of darkness, the four teens found themselves furtively making their way on foot to the seedier side of Green Grove. Lacey, Jo and Rico were very careful to stick close to Danny along the way, all three acutely aware of the dangerous element that surrounded them. There were street peddlers and shady individuals loitering despite the growing lateness of the hour and it was different not to be unnerved. Danny, however, didn't seem to harbor their same discomfort. He deftly navigated his way through the darkened alleyways and dilapidated streets seemingly without a care.

Lacey tugged on his sleeve with an anxious frown. "How do you know this guy exactly?"

"You remember the lock picking kit?"

She repressed her answering growl. "Yes."

"Same guy. His name is Levee Branson."

"And what exactly does this 'Levee' do?" Lacey asked with a marked lack of enthusiasm.

"He steals cars and strips them for parts."

"That's great, Danny! Excellent choice of associates you have there."

Danny bit back his amused smirk at her obvious irritation with him. "Hey, we all gotta eat, Lacey," he said, "Levee is good people. He's helped me out of a bind more than once."

Levee Branson presented the stereotypical picture of the menacing, young black male. He was dark, big, tattooed and dressed sagging jeans, heavy boots and a wife-beater. But the instant he found Danny standing on his back porch, his face brightened in a genuine smile of affection and he pulled Danny in for a hearty hug. "D, my man!" he greeted with laughing enthusiasm, "What's up! You can't stay out of trouble, can you?" Danny laughed at the assertion and it was the way he returned Levee Branson's embrace with unreserved fondness that allowed Lacey, Jo and Rico to relax...but only slightly.

"I'm trying to stay out of it," he told Levee when they parted, "but it keeps finding me somehow."

His friend grunted. "You know you're all over the news, right?"

"Yeah, I heard about that," Danny replied wryly.

"You didn't really kill that girl, did you?"

"What do you think?"

Levee tipped a glance around Danny's shoulder to where Lacey, Jo and Rico stood huddled together. Rico and Jo bounced anxious glances all around themselves and practically cowered behind Danny while Lacey kept Levee trained with a mistrustful, warning glare. He shook his head and regarded Danny with an ironic smile. "That the girlfriend back there, glaring at me like she wants to punch a hole in my neck?"

Danny turned back a quick look to find Lacey, indeed, glowering at Levee ferociously. "Yep. That's my girl. And two of my friends."

Yet another grunt escaped Levee. "I think you need to stay out of jail, that's what I think."

"We happen to agree on that. Which is actually the reason I came to see you, Levee. I need a car."

Levee Branson didn't have a single problem sticking his neck out for a friend but he was also a businessman. He had other people to whom he answered in his particular line of business so he was able to provide Danny with a vehicle...for a nominal fee. While Jo and Lacey grumbled about the cost and Rico mostly tried to avoid direct eye contact with those who were milling about in the chop shop, Danny understood very well what he was asking of Levee and what kind of position he was putting him in by asking for a car that had been reserved for other purposes. He knew that he was fortunate that Levee was even willing to help him out at all because it was almost certain his friend was taking a loss in the deal. Their transaction, however, took a rather tense and unexpected turn when Levee also offered Danny a gun for protection.

"You're going to need it," he told Danny in all seriousness, "If the cops find you, they're going to shoot first and ask questions later. This is your second offense and they're not gonna play around. You gotta protect yourself."

Danny's hand hovered above the sleek, gleaming weapon as he mentally weighed the advantages and disadvantages of taking it. Lacey gaped at him. "You can't seriously be considering this!" she hissed, "Danny, that's a gun!"

"I know what it is, Lacey!" he bit out shortly, "Levee has a point. I'm wanted for murder. The cops aren't going to politely request that I come with them when they take me into custody. I'm willing to lay down odds that as soon as the news breaks that I jumped bail, I'm going to be considered 'armed and dangerous.'"

"You know it," Levee agreed.

Jo smacked Danny's shoulder with an infuriated glower. "And you think a gun is the answer?" she burst out. She surveyed him with a penetrating look when he failed to provide an answer to that question. "Would you really use it, Danny?"

He regarded Jo with an inscrutable expression. "If I had to."

The way she looked at him right then was like a kick in the stomach. Danny watched with aching sadness as disillusionment, disappointment and fear filled Jo's blue eyes. She stared at him as if he were a stranger to her, taking several, stumbling steps back from him and shaking her head in stunned disbelief when he reached towards her in entreaty.

"Wow..." she uttered thickly, "I don't even know who the hell you are right now."

As she took off from the shop, Rico said, "I'll go after her. She shouldn't be alone in this neighborhood." He quickly added when Levee shot him a dark look, "Not that it isn't a wonderfully charming one."

Levee grunted an amused laugh after Rico left to chase after Jo. "Your friends are weird, D." He took note of the disapproving glare Lacey was currently leveling at Danny and astutely discerned that a domestic dispute was about to get underway. "I'mma let you handle your business with your woman here," he said, "Let me know what you decide."

"You are not buying a gun," Lacey stated resolutely once she and Danny had some relative privacy, "It's a _terrible_ idea!"

"A gun means protection!"

"And so you would actually kill someone?"

"If it came to that!"

"Danny, that's not even who you are! You would just be proving people right about you!"

"So what? I'm already a killer in their eyes anyway! I'll do what I have to do."

Lacey scoffed. "You know, I don't believe this act you've got going for a second," she said, "You can put on this performance about being flippant over possibly taking someone's life but I know that's the last thing you want. I know you're scared, Danny, but that's no reason to have a gun!"

"And what happens if we get cornered by the cops?" he argued, "If you or Jo or Rico ended up hurt or dead just because you were with me, I couldn't live with that, Lacey. I just want to keep you safe."

Her blistering anger with him crumbled in an instant and was replaced with swamping compassion instead. She drew him into her arms. "Jo, Rico and I knew the risks when we came with you," she whispered into his throat, "You don't need a gun, Danny. We'll protect each other."

Half an hour later, Danny had procured a 2007 Toyota, Camry with a newly filed off vin number and fresh set of plates for their escape. While he said his goodbyes to Levee, Lacey, Jo and Rico packed their meager belongings away in the trunk of the car. After Lacey and Rico had climbed inside, Danny caught hold of Jo's elbow to waylay her because he wanted to dispel any lingering strain between them.

"Wait a second," he murmured, "We need to clear the air."

Jo jerked her arm from his grasp, her lips compressed in a thin line. She crossed her arms mutinously. "Are you packing heat right now?"

Danny couldn't quite hold back his sharp bark of laughter at her phrasing. "What did you say? 'Packing heat?'" he echoed playfully, "Seriously, Jo? How much _Law and Order_ have you been watching?"

The line of her lips became even thinner. "You know what I mean. I'm not comfortable traveling with a gun, Danny!"

"I don't have it," he reassured her, "And I doubt I would have really brought it along anyway. I just...I don't want anything to happen to you, Lacey and Rico. That's like my worst nightmare, Jo. You guys have become my family."

Finally understanding his underlying motives, Jo pitched forward to give him a quick hug. "Don't worry," she told him, "We'll stay under the radar. No one's going to get shot. It'll work out."

Danny was still fighting to gain some of Jo's same conviction when they finally crossed the state line two hours later. Jo and Rico had fallen asleep in the backseat an hour prior, their heads lolling together. Lacey was making a valiant effort to remain awake and keep Danny company but he could tell she was barely holding on.

She was rightly exhausted. She was still wearing the same clothes she had been in for the last three days, coming off of a very minimal amount of sleep after camping out in her car overnight and a ferocious confrontation with her parents. He was surprised she hadn't nodded off shortly after Jo and Rico. Danny, on the other hand, was wide awake. He was extremely cognizant of the fact that as soon as they'd passed the "Pennsylvania Welcomes You" signage that their lives had changed irrevocably and there was no going back.

"You're worried about how all of this is going to work out, aren't you?" Lacey deduced in a quiet tone, noting the pensive furrow to his brow.

"The cabin is just a temporary stop until things die down," he told her, "I can't stay there indefinitely, Lacey."

" _We_ can't stay there," she corrected stubbornly.

"You can't stay on the run with me forever."

"Who says?"

"I do." When she started to protest, he shot her a mocking glance. "Babe, you haven't changed your clothes in days," he reasoned, "You were forced to leave your precious flatiron behind and you've made it very clear to me how much that means to you. _And_ you're probably dying for a shower right about now. I know you hate this."

"You're right," she agreed, "This definitely doesn't rank up there as the best day ever but, _I love you_ so it's worth it to me."

"You say that now but, can you do months of this?" he challenged, " _Years_ of this? Because that's what we're talking about here, Lacey. Years of running. Years of hiding. Years of lying. I'm used to that life and I can adjust. It's something different for you guys."

"So what are you saying? Are you going to ditch us, Danny? You know, kind of like you did yesterday with my parents."

"They were going to make you move to Seattle, Lace! I didn't know what else to do!"

"Well, dumping me in a kneejerk reaction certainly wasn't it," she retorted tartly.

"I didn't dump you. I was trying to give you options."

"Uh-huh, _options_..." Lacey repeated doubtfully, "And is that what you're trying to do now with me, Jo and Rico? Give us 'options?'"

"I'm saying that if you decide to walk away, I wouldn't hold it against you."

"I can't walk away from you, Danny," Lacey refuted softly, "You're my whole future. If this is all we have then this is all we have. And that's enough for me." He favored her with a crooked smile before turning his full attention back to the road. "But you _are_ going to have to buy me a flatiron _and_ some leave-in conditioner _and_ a crème moisturizer _and_ some hair oil," she added, ticking off the list with her fingers, "Because this...?" She took a moment to fluff out the frizzy ends of her hair as he dissolved into eye-crinkling laughter. "It cannot continue."

"Done," he promised, "You should get some sleep now. We have a long drive ahead of us."

Lacey settled down into her seat, with every intention of following his suggestion only to spring upright a split second later when something vital occurred to her. "The Poconos!" she burst out in a gasp.

Danny surveyed her with a startled look. "Um...yeah, that's where we're headed now. I thought we had established that already."

"No," she emphasized, "In the apartment, that first night that we had gone, there was a brochure lying on the counter for vacation cabins in the Poconos. I remember because the address had been circled with red ink pen!"

"Wait a minute, Lacey. Are you saying...?"

She confirmed that hanging question with a slow, deliberate nod. "Danny, I think we're actually going to find your dad after all."


	29. Chapter Twenty Eight

**Chapter Twenty Eight**

"So there are only _two_ beds," Jo announced rather unnecessarily after she flung open the door to their motel room, "and _four_ of us. This should be interesting." It was a standard motel room and really wasn't anything less than what she had been expecting but she remained disappointed all the same.

"Well, that's the last thing I'm thinking about right now," Lacey said, shouldering past Jo with two plastic bags filled with essential toiletries and fresh clothing clutched in her hand, "I get first dibs on the bathroom!" She had already scampered inside and shut the door before anyone could mount a protest. In truth, Rico, Jo and Danny were simply too tired to care.

Although they could have made the trip to the cabin retreat in one straight shot, the demand for a hot shower and a soft bed could no longer be denied. They had been going nonstop for more than twelve hours and had spent every second of that time on edge. Nearly everywhere they went, there was some bit of news coverage going on about Danny and his arrest for Regina's murder. He was being painted as a teenage serial killer and master manipulator, his story being sensationalized by the news media. For that reason, Danny was forced to keep a very low profile while Jo and Rico set about the task of gathering food and supplies as well as procuring lodging for their ragtag group.

Strangely, however, the four teens went about their business mostly undetected. No one truly gave them a second glance at all. While they were hyperaware of their surroundings and the people around them, the world at large appeared to find _them_ rather uninteresting. Yet, even with the lack of scrutiny, the tension that was created from the constant fear of being caught was taxing. By the end of the night, they were in need of a reprieve.

After an on the go dinner that consisted of greasy cheeseburgers and cold fries, they decided to break in a small, Pennsylvania township just off the main interstate. The sleepy little community was burrowed in the valley and seemed to consist of one main strip that had a gas station, one lonely McDonald's that looked as if it had been there for the last century and a ramshackle motel about a mile down the road from it. They felt rather safe staying for the night because it was unlikely that anyone in that place had ever heard the name Danny Desai. The motel clerk didn't even blink when Jo and Rico shuffled in, disheveled and clearly underage, and asked for the most spacious room they had, preferably one with a pull out sofa. The fact that they didn't get anything remotely close to what they'd asked for mattered very little in the end. The four teens were grateful just to have a bed that night.

Danny, in particular, needed some time to collect his thoughts and prepare emotionally for the eventuality of facing his father again. The idea that Vikram Desai was still alive continued to feel incredibly surreal to him. It wasn't unlike chasing his own Moby Dick and, for that reason, the idea continued almost impossible to wrap his mind around. His head couldn't relinquish the reality that he was looking for a dead man but his heart wouldn't stop pumping with hope.

Still, it was a long shot. Danny knew that there was no real guarantee that Lacey's theory was correct but, if there was even a remote chance, he wanted to be ready. In the meantime, he would try to refresh his mind and his body and enjoy some carefree time with his friends while he still could. He was highly cognizant of the transient nature of their situation. Danny wasn't naive enough or selfish enough to think they'd stick with him indefinitely.

Pushing that disheartening thought to the very back of his mind, Danny assisted Jo in sorting through the bags of supplies they had procured from a superstore several miles before their last stop while Rico collapsed onto the nearest bed. His weary groan echoed throughout the confines of the room. "Just let me die here," he announced, his words muffled by the mattress, "I've lived a full life. I'm ready."

Jo smirked over his dramatic display. "Since Rico has already started to vegetate, we should probably discuss the sleeping arrangements for tonight then," she prefaced.

"Don't care," Rico mumbled gamely, "Just as long as you don't make me move from this spot. My hand is aching again and I'm pretty sure I smell. I want Ibuprofen, a shower and sleep in that order."

"Fine by me," Jo replied, "You and Danny can share this bed and Lacey and I will take the other one. Easy peasy lemon squeezy."

Danny launched an immediate protest over that arbitrary decision. "Hey, no offense to Rico, because I'm sure he's a great cuddle partner and all-,"

"-I am the best-," the aforementioned interjected.

"-but I want to sleep with Lacey tonight."

"Like that's a secret to anyone here, Danny," Jo retorted dryly.

"I don't mean it like that," he grumbled, "I'm just saying...why can't you and Rico bunk together and me and Lacey take the other bed?"

Rico perked up instantly with the suggestion. "I'm not against that at all." But, upon finding himself on the receiving end of Jo's deadly glower, he quickly added, "But I would so much prefer to sleep with you, Danny."

"Stop intimidating him!" Danny admonished her, "If he's willing to do it, why are you being so resistant?"

Jo squawked in rising affront. "Um...hello? He's a boy and I'm a girl! Need I say more?"

Danny shrugged that argument off with ease. "So what? It's no big deal! You and I used to share the same bed all the time!"

"Yeah, Danny, when we were _nine_!" Jo tossed back, "This is hardly the same thing!"

"Why not? It's completely platonic! It shouldn't be a problem unless you guys are attracted..." He trailed off in mid-sentence, belatedly recalling the fact that Rico had a raging crush on Jo. He cringed inwardly and that was before he caught a glimpse of Jo's thoroughly mortified expression. Rico, too, had buried his face deep in the bed and was groaning in mortification. "You know what? Forget I said anything," he hastily backtracked, "You're right, Jo. The sleeping arrangements are fine as they are. I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's okay, Danny," came Rico's muted reply, "You didn't give anything away. She already knows."

Danny cringed even more. "Oh, well that makes it even _more_ awkward," he said, "I should probably go catch a shower before I cause more damage. So...I'm just gonna go now."

"But Lacey is already in the bathroom," Jo protested as he began to make his retreat, "You have to wait your turn, Danny!"

He pivoted around to blink at her in wide-eyed innocence. "I'm just trying to conserve water, Jo." He darted across the room to grab an armful of clean clothes before bouncing back to the bathroom door to knock softly. "What can I say?" he laughed as sodden Lacey quickly pulled him inside, "I've become very energy conscious lately."

"You're a lying liar who lies, Danny Desai," she yelled after him, "and I see right through you!" Once the door had been firmly shut behind him and Lacey, she muttered, "He's such a jackass."

Rico rolled onto his back to regard her. "You can have the bed, Jo. I'm perfectly okay with making a pallet on the floor. That way Lacey and Danny don't have to be split up and everybody wins."

She shook her head in protest, resuming her earlier task of arranging their purchased items. "No way! Have you seen this carpet? Who knows what kinds of stains are ground into this fabric! You can't sleep on the floor."

"Well, when you put it like that, I don't really want to anymore."

"There's nothing wrong with our original plan," Jo maintained, "Danny's just being a perv. If he thinks he's going to sneak sex with Lacey while I'm in this room he has another thing coming!"

"I'm pretty sure he's sneaking sex with her right _now_ ," Rico pointed out dryly.

She grimaced at the visual. "Let's not talk about that, okay! Ugh!"

"Okay," Rico agreed, swinging upright to regard her with an earnest stare, "Maybe we can talk about what you meant before when you said I'd made things between us complicated instead." His gaze was unwavering as he added, "Cause I kind of want to know what you meant."

Jo faltered for a moment, nearly dropping the six pack of Coke she held in her hands. She tried to cover her unease by plucking a can from its plastic ring, cracking it open and then grabbing a bottle of Motrin so that Rico could get some pain relief for his hand. Only when she was composed did she turn and pass him the items, surveying him with a carefully neutral expression.

"Why would you want to talk about that now?"

Rico tossed two tablets into his mouth and chased them with a giant gulp of cola. "When else are we going to talk about it?" He leaned over to set the can and pill bottle on the bedside nightstand.

"Maybe when we're not on the run from the law."

"That's a convenient excuse...especially since that's going to be true for as long as we stick with Danny."

"What do you want me to say, Rico?" she flared in a burst of emotion.

"I don't know, tell me what you're thinking!" he retorted, "Tell me how you feel...or _don't_ feel."

"I don't know how I feel," she replied in a tiny, muffled tone, "I'm so mixed up right now."

"Mixed up how?"

"I just...I've never let myself think about you in that way before!"

"Okay. And now?"

" _And now,_ ever since you kissed me, I do! I think about you that way and I hate it!"

Her outburst both figuratively and literally deflated him. Rico slumped forward with a small, dejected grunt. "Well...okay...that's...that's straightforward. I...um...I wanted to know and now I do... So...uh...what is it? Is a relationship with me like a fate worse than death or something?"

"I don't get why you want to change up what we have already! It's a good thing. It's a _solid_ thing!"

"We can still be solid and be together, Jo."

She shook her head wildly in denial. "No! I just want us to be friends," she cried, "Can't we go back to being friends again?"

"We never _stopped_ being friends..that's the problem." Rico replied in a sorrowful mumble. And then he gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "You know what? Just forget about it. Forget we had this whole conversation. Let's just watch a movie or something."

Not waiting for her agreement, Rico flipped on the television and found the scrolling television guide. His interest in finding an actual program to watch, however, was minimal. He couldn't concentrate. He was much too aware of the tension between Jo and himself. Jo was also highly cognizant of the strain as well. She sat down on the edge of the bed, her back and shoulders stiff, and made stilted conversation with Rico that bordered on painful. They made it through an entire episode of _Friends_ before she finally reached her breaking point.

"You see?" she cried, swiveling to face him, "This is exactly what I was afraid would happen! We can't even have a decent conversation anymore. There's too much tension now!"

"We were talking," Rico argued.

"'I like Rachel' and 'Chandler's a funny guy' does not qualify as real conversation, Rico! We're making trivial small talk! Since when do we do that? We _never_ make small talk! It's like we're not even friends anymore!"

"You're being overdramatic."

"Am I? Things have already started to change between us! Why do I feel like I'm going to lose you?"

He was genuinely taken aback to see tears welling in her eyes. Her obvious distress helped dispel some of the sadness he felt over her rejection, mostly because he'd much rather be sad than make _her_ sad. Rico could also see that her rejection of him went far beyond unreciprocated feelings. Jo was genuinely terrified of losing what they shared. With that gained understanding, Rico had little thought beyond reassuring her to the contrary.

"That's not going to happen," he murmured, "You're not going to lose me. You're my best friend and nothing can every change that."

"That's what you say but, you're going to pull away from me because of this and I don't know if I can handle that," she muttered tearfully, "You don't know how much you mean to me, Rico. I don't take our friendship for granted at all. You offered me your friendship when I had _nothing_ to give you in return. If I ever lost you..."

Rico crawled across the bed then and pulled her into his arms, cradling her gently as she began to sob into the front of his shirt. "I'm not going anywhere, Jo. I promise I'm not."

She clung to him, her sobs coming harder with his whispered reassurances. Although he wasn't entirely certain of the reason for her seemingly irrational fear and he felt rather helpless, Rico did what he could to comfort her. He pressed tender kisses to her temple and forehead and gently brushed away the tears that fell on her cheeks. Jo rubbed her face lightly against his shoulder as she struggled to get a hold of herself. When her weeping finally began to die down into quiet sniffles, she lifted her head and immediately found herself staring into dark eyes brimming with concern.

Suddenly, every argument Jo had made against them being together was made irrelevant as she was struck with the undeniable urge to kiss him again. It wasn't so much his physical attractiveness that compelled her either. She had always been aware of the fact that Rico was good-looking in a mischievous, geeky teenage boy kind of way. He had an angular face with beautifully sculpted cheekbones, dark, sloping brown eyes with equally dark lashes, a perfect pink mouth and a charmingly affable smile. But what truly drew Jo to him was his inner attractiveness...the unselfish way he cared for her and supported her, his devotion and his dependability.

She had grown to count on those things. Her reluctance explore something romantic between them had nothing to do with a lack of attraction. Jo was terrified of losing the solid foundation that he provided for her. She didn't want to upset what was already perfection between them. She couldn't imagine risking that for something as uncertain as physical attraction. But even as her mind screamed no, her heart was thundering with each frantic beat, "Yes, Yes, YES!"

"Are you okay?" Rico whispered as he began to grow fidgety under her wide, wet stare.

The way she was looking at him right then did not necessarily strike him as...platonic. However, his experience with the opposite sex was very limited and Rico acknowledged that he could very well be seeing what he wanted to see. The idea was wildly incongruent with every single thing she'd just said to him. Still, it was difficult to dismiss her quickened breathing which, in turn, provoked his own. His heart took up a rapid thumping in his chest. His palms began to sweat. It suddenly felt like a million degrees in that room and Jo's proximity only increased the warmth.

"What if it was a disaster?" she asked him.

He tore his eyes from her mouth, not even aware he had been staring until she spoke. "If what was a disaster?"

"Me and you. What if we didn't work out? What if we broke up? Then that would be it. Our friendship would be over. What we have now would be ruined forever."

He dropped his eyes briefly to her lips. "Why are you so sure we're not going to last?"

"Why are you so sure that we will?" she countered but, she was already closing her eyes in anticipation of his kiss.

He had just made the barest contact with her lips when the bathroom door opened. As the freshly showered pair emerged from the bathroom in a billowing cloud of steam, Jo rolled away from Rico in a flurry of arms and legs, so swiftly that he almost tumbled from the bed from the bed completely. Lacey and Danny stopped short and bandied knowing smiles between them before Danny laughingly inquired, "What's up, guys?"

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Rico exploded in a short burst of impatience.

Lacey quirked at brow at their very obvious behavior. "Was it the eyelash again?"

"Har, har. Whatever, Lacey," Jo groused, "What I want to know is..."

Her flippant comment about whether they'd left any hot water was lost in a surprised gasp when she looked at them directly for the first time since they'd come out of the bathroom. In a little under two hours, Lacey had managed to transform her hair from a coarse, wiry mess into two elegant French-style braids. She looked beautiful as always but, it was really Danny's appearance that held Jo's rapt focus. His shoulder length locks, which had become a trademark for him since his return to Green Grove, had been shorn away to just about the mid-point of his ears, leaving his hair in damp waves that fell across his forehead and eyes.

"Oh my God..." she uttered in disbelief, "You cut your hair. You look so different! I can't believe you cut your hair!"

Danny self-consciously tunneled his fingers through his short locks. "I didn't do it." He hitched his thumb towards Lacey. "Lacey did all the work. She's the hair expert."

"Not even close," Lacey snorted, "But I will admit, I did cry a little as I was chopping it off. I'm gonna miss it."

Danny shrugged. "Why? It's just hair. It'll grow back."

"Yeah, but it was so beautiful. And, I was fond of it for...um...you know... _certain_ reasons," Lacey hedged with a naughty smile.

"Yeah, I've got a pretty good idea what those 'certain reasons' were," Danny laughed. His voice lowered an octave when he added, "It can still work. You just need to have a stronger grip."

Rico grunted, still a little irritated about their problematic timing. "Um...should Jo and I leave the room and give you both some privacy because this inside joke of yours is kind of obvious?" Lacey and Danny had the grace to appear properly chastened by his comment.

"So why did you do it?" Jo asked Danny, "Why'd you suddenly decide to cut hair?"

"My face is all over the news. I thought it might be a good idea to change up my appearance a little."

Jo bit her lip, considering the wisdom of his actions in regards to her own appearance. She glanced anxiously between Lacey and Danny. "Is that something we all should do? Should I cut my hair too...or dye it or something?"

When her questioning eyes landed on Lacey, Lacey immediately threw up her hands and began shaking her head. "Don't look at me." She pointed to her own hair. "I'll wear a hat and sunglasses, maybe even a wig but no scissors or hair color is touching this. That's where I draw the line."

Danny chuckled over her adamancy. "It's really up to you guys. But I don't expect you to make any drastic changes to your appearances for something that might not be long term anyway."

Rico squinted at him in confusion. "What do you mean? Once we find your dad and prove to everyone that he's alive, then this whole nightmare is over."

"That's the best case scenario," Danny said, "We don't know what's going to happen though."

Lacey reached over to touch his arm lightly. "I'd like to keep believing we'll find your father tomorrow and then you can start living your life again."

"I want to believe that too but there are no guarantees. If we don't find him, who knows how long I'm going to be on the run," Danny reasoned, "And, even if we _do_ find my father, that might not be enough to make all of this go away. Just because we prove he's alive that doesn't mean he's going to confess to Tara or Regina's murder. It's still my word against his."

Jo shook her head, as if such a possibility was inconceivable to her. "Danny, he's your father," she said, "I know he's done a bunch of awful things but...I also know that he loved you. He seemed so genuine about that. I can't actually believe he'd let you go to prison a second time for something he did."

Lacey spoke up to quietly refute that notion. "He's already done that once already, Jo, and he claimed to love Danny," she said, "Why would he be bothered by doing it a second time? Obviously, he has some awareness of what's going on if he put the necklace in Danny's locker and if he knew to run after we went poking around in his place. He's deliberately letting Danny take the fall for this."

"So should we just place an anonymous tip to the cops then?" Rico considered, "We can let them know that Mr. Desai is hiding out in that cabin and then _they_ can take him down. We can just lay low until the fallout is done."

"We still don't know that he's up there for sure," Danny replied, "Besides that, this might be my last opportunity to get answers from him. If we call the cops, they'll be all over that place and I'll never get close enough. I want to see him. I _need_ to talk to him face to face and ask him why he did all of this."

Lacey encircled his waist and rested her cheek against his arm. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Danny? I don't think you're going to get the closure you're hoping for, babe."

"I don't know but, I gotta try."

Although Rico and Jo were nearly as hesitant as Lacey was on the topic, none of them attempted to reason further with Danny on the matter. In the end, no one wanted to dash his hopes for a positive outcome. Instead, they concentrated on finalizing the details of their sleeping arrangements that night and it was officially agreed that the girls would share one bed while the boys shared the other. Once that was settled, Jo prepared to take her own shower.

While Rico patiently waited for his turn, he stretched out on one bed and disinterestedly flipped through the television channels, steadfastly ignoring the kissing, giggling murmurs of the snuggling couple on the neighboring bed. He was a little soured by the fact that they felt so free to makeout whenever and wherever when he couldn't even _attempt_ to kiss Jo without interruptions. He was seriously contemplating throwing a pillow at them in effigy when a breaking news bulletin caught his attention.

"...it is believed that Mr. Desai has skipped out on bail at this time. The convicted murderer was released from county jail early this morning due to 'extenuating circumstances' with the understanding that he would be present for his hearing on Monday morning. The judge in this case stated-,"

Rico abruptly shut off the television but not soon enough to escape Danny and Lacey's attention. Danny emitted a self-deprecating grunt. "Well, I guess it's official," he sighed, "I'm a wanted fugitive now."

Lacey nuzzled a kiss across the ball of his shoulder. "We knew that was coming. Right?"

"It won't be long before you guys are lumped in as my accomplices," he predicted grimly, "If you want to bail, this is the time to do it because you might not get another opportunity."

"I'm not leaving you," Lacey maintained stubbornly, "I can't speak for Rico and Jo but, I have no intentions of going anywhere."

"Neither do I," Rico said, "and I know Jo feels the same way. We've come this far with you, Danny. We'll go the distance, wherever that takes us. Maybe changing up our appearances isn't such a bad idea after all. I could do something different with my hair, maybe grow a struggle 'stache. It's kind of exciting! I might even go blonde or straight out platinum! I think I could work it."

Danny grinned at him wryly. "You're just running on pure adrenaline right now, aren't you, Rico?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Tomorrow when this hits me full force that I'm a wanted criminal and all my future prospects for college are shot, I'll have a major freakout. Don't worry."

Lacey laughed. "Thanks for the heads up. We'll be prepared."

A short time later, Jo slipped from the bathroom, her hair still damp from her recent shower. There was a brief moment of awkwardness between her and Rico as he attempted to sidle past her to get into the bathroom as she exited. When she went left, he stepped in the same direction and when he shifted right, she inevitably made the same, simultaneous move. No matter what they did, they always ended up face to face. Finally, Jo rooted herself in place with an exasperated huff. She made a short gesture for him to proceed.

"This is ridiculous! You go!"

"O...okay...thanks..." Rico stammered, adding in afterthought before he ducked out of sight, "You smell really good by the way."

Taken off guard by his careless, bumbling compliment, Jo stared after him with a faint, infatuated smile. She was completely unaware of her lovesick expression until she pivoted to find both Danny and Lacey regarding her with large, goofy grins. Jo's smile collapsed in an instant, to be replaced with a dark scowl. She sniffed haughtily.

"I hate you both," she uttered before stomping over to the bed that Rico had recently vacated to finish drying her hair.

Lacey wasn't deterred by Jo's blatant attempts to ignore them. "Oh good grief, Jo!" she cried in exasperation, "Just kiss him already!"

Once everyone was finally showered and prepared for bed, the four briefly strategized their plans for the following day and then said their goodnights. Danny and Lacey both opted to take the outside on their respective beds so that they could lie facing one another across the four feet of space that separated them. It wasn't nearly the same as lying side by side but, given the situation, it was the next best thing. Fortunately, it didn't take Jo and Rico very long to drop off into exhaustion which afforded Lacey and Danny, who remained awake and restless, with some private time to talk.

"This sucks," Danny muttered, "I really wish I could be lying next to you right now. I want to hold you."

"I want you to hold me too," she said softly, "I'm getting used to sleeping with you, Desai, even if you are kind of a bed hog."

"We can't all be perfect princesses when we sleep, Lace."

"Bite me."

"I would, babe, but that might traumatize, Rico," he teased, "Remember what he said before he fell asleep...'no shenanigans.'" To Lacey's disappointment, his easy smile was altogether too fleeting and without warning the shuttered look that had lingered in his eyes all night returned. "I really am sorry for dragging you in the middle of all of this, Lacey."

"Would you stop apologizing?" Lacey huffed in exasperation, "And, while we're on the subject, would you also stop trying to push me away? It's beginning to border on annoying."

"I guess I'm afraid you're going to wake up one morning and regret having come with me and then you'll resent me for everything you've lost," he confessed a little brokenly, "At least, if you leave now, it will be on better terms, you know?"

Lacey's eyes clouded with hurt. "Why do you always say things like that? Don't you have any faith in me at all, Danny?"

"It's not that I don't have faith in you," he assured her, "I don't have faith in _me_. The good things never last, Lacey. I learned that a long time ago."

"That's a rather pessimistic viewpoint, don't you think?"

"Can you honestly see yourself having a future with me?" he wondered, "I mean, eventually living together like a normal couple, getting married, having babies, the whole she-bang?"

"Maybe one day, when all this craziness is done."

"See, that's just my point. What if it's never done? What if this is the way my life is always going to be, Lacey?" he lamented softly, "I want you. I want a life with you more than anything. But I can't imagine ever giving you anything remotely close to normal and that terrifies me because I don't know how we can truly have a future together if I can't."

Overcome with the strong need to comfort him, Lacey scooted from her own bed and slipped into his. Danny shifted back closer to Rico to make room for her in the bed, gathering her close in his arms with a grateful sigh. They snuggled together in the limited space.

Lacey nuzzled a kiss across his collarbone, as uncertain about the future as he was but determined to reassure him nonetheless, and herself as well, that everything would work out in the end. "Danny, we're only sixteen right now," she reasoned softly, "A lot can change in the next few years. We don't know what the future holds. We can only take life day by day and make the most of what we have when we have it."

She tipped back her head to favor him with an earnest gaze. "Right now, all I want is to be in your arms. That's the only thing that matters _in this moment_...and that's what counts."

He kissed her gently, reverently. "I love you, Lacey Porter...so much."

"I love you too."

They shared several more nibbling kisses, shifting closer with the intention of deepening them when Rico suddenly reared upright and twisted an exasperated glare down at them over his shoulder. "I don't mean to break up your tender moment or anything," he huffed in irritation, "But what part of 'no shenanigans' was unclear for you? I don't particularly enjoy having you guys make out right behind me so...could you not?"

Danny and Lacey shared a short burst of laughter over Rico's uncharacteristic show of aggravation before Lacey reluctantly untangled herself from Danny's arms and returned to her own bed. They fell asleep smiling at one another shortly after, conquered at last by the exhausting events of their day. Sometime around 3 a.m., however, Danny found himself rudely jostled awake from a deep sleep by an anxious Lacey kneeling at his bedside. He squinted down at her, blearily rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"What...what is it?" he croaked, "Something happen?"

"I got it."

He frowned at her in befuddlement. "Got what?"

"My period," she clarified in a whisper, "I just started. I'm not pregnant."

Danny pushed himself up onto his elbows as her words finally began to penetrate the fog of sleep. "You're not?"

"Nope. That's one less thing we have to worry about. Right?"

"Right..." Danny replied without any real enthusiasm.

He vaguely wondered why news that should have left him feeling elated only filled him with a strange sense of sadness instead. And judging by Lacey's despondent expression, she was wrestling with a similar confusion. Though it remained unspoken between them, they both realized that, had there actually _been_ a baby, they would have had something incredibly strong to bond them, something that would have inextricably linked them together for the rest of their lives. It wasn't necessarily the wisest reasoning but it was one their young hearts most readily latched onto. Now, without that possibility looming, the prospect of them actually having a future together, given their grim circumstances, seemed even more unlikely.

Danny reached over to caress her cheek, acutely aware of the tears gathering in her eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she reassured him with a forced smile before she shook off his touch and straightened, "I just thought you'd want to know. I didn't want you worrying about it."

"Sure. Thanks for telling me."

"No problem. I'm gonna go back to bed now."

"Wait. Do you...need anything or...are you hurting...or...?"

"I'm good," she reassured him quickly, "I'm really fine. Thanks for asking. Good night, Danny."

"Night."

But Danny couldn't help but wonder if she was "really fine" after all, especially after Lacey climbed back into her own bed without another word or even a kiss goodnight and intentionally presented him with her back.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry, Anon. I wasn't purposely ignoring you about your Tuhad/Dacey question. I meant to reply to you and then realized I hadn't. But to answer your question, no I don't have any plans to write a Tuhad/Dacey fic at this time.**


	30. Chapter Twenty Nine

**Chapter Twenty Nine**

Kyle Masterson suppressed a groan as he approached his office and found Samuel and Judy Porter seated outside of it, waiting for him with matching expressions of anxiety. "I told you both I would call if I had news for you," he told them both in lieu of a greeting, "As you're aware, I haven't called you so I don't have any news."

"It's been two days!" Sam burst out, "You've got to have something, Kyle! Our daughter is out there!"

"Can't you question Karen Desai one more time?" Judy demanded directly after, "She knows more than she's telling us! Please! Make her tell you where we can find Lacey!"

It wasn't that Kyle was unsympathetic. He knew that the Porters must being going wild with worry if they could manage to be in the same room together without sniping at each other. In fact, he could very well understand their frantic desperation because he was grappling with those same emotions himself. His daughter was missing as well, having running away from home only a few hours before it was discovered that Danny Desai had jumped bail and disappeared into the ether.

At the very onset, Kyle hadn't been too particularly worried. Angry and frustrated beyond belief, especially so when he learned that Rico had also joined in on their shenanigans, but not worried at all. He had been fairly confident that he would find them all within a matter of hours. After all, they were dealing with a group of teenagers with no ready form of transportation available to them and no real means for getting very far outside of the city. That was one of the very reasons the judge had been willing to grant Danny bail in the first place...because he was a sixteen year old boy with strong ties to the community and no place else he could go. No one had expected him to pose a true flight risk, especially not Kyle Masterson.

When they had first gone missing, Kyle had arrogantly reassured everyone involved that they would be located that very night. There weren't too many places to hide in Green Grove. Two days later, however, there was still no trace of them and Kyle had been thoroughly humbled. Not one of the children had made contact with their parents. Jo had even shrewdly decided to leave her cell phone turned off as well so there would be no way of tracking her GPS signal in order to locate her. She'd very likely advised her companions to do the same. Karen Desai most definitely knew where her son had gone but, even with all her legal trouble looming and jail time as a real possibility, the woman remained unwilling to break her silence.

Kyle had tried everything from cajolery to outright threats to get through to her. And, when it seemed that none of that would work, he had appealed to Karen's decency as a parent instead. He was worried sick about his daughter. He didn't know if she was in trouble or if she had been hurt or what kind of crowd she might have fallen in with now that she was running with Danny. He needed to know that she was safe. Not even his heartfelt, fatherly pleading had been enough to move Karen Desai. She had been adamant that her son would never hurt Jo, nor would he ever allow anything to happen to her either. She also maintained that Jo herself would approve of her silence as well, otherwise she would have never gone off with Danny in the first place.

The entire situation was turning into a personal and professional nightmare. His wife had become a blubbering mess in the last few of days, veering wildly between anger, blame, worry and fear because of his seeming ineptitude with locating their daughter. Green Grove's esteemed mayor, Albert Rollins, was also riding his back to bring the Regina Crane murder case to a close because, according to him, it made the political element in Green Grove look incompetent. Much like he had been during Tara Desai's murder investigation, Mayor Rollins had wanted a swift and decisive resolution to that case as well.

At the time of that first murder, the small and cozy community of Green Grove had never seen such a heinous crime before. Residents had been shocked, appalled and frightened that a boy who had attended school with their children could be capable of cold-blooded murder. It had been an embarrassing stain upon their town and had shaken the citizens' feelings of safety and stability. Mayor Rollins had been determined that Green Grove would not become solely known as the home of child-killer Danny Desai. He had wanted to lock Danny away as soon as possible. In his mind, the sooner Danny was out of media spotlight and behind bars, the sooner Green Grove and the world at large could forget his awful crime.

For that reason, Tara Desai's murder case had proved to be rather open and shut. They had the murder weapon with the suspect's prints all over it. They had his own confession to the crime. They had witnesses who corroborated his claim that he had murdered his disabled aunt in her sleep. It had all been fairly straight-forward. For Kyle Masterson, having been newly appointed as Green Grove's chief of police, it had been the first high profile case of his entire career. He had made national headlines for the speed with which he had brought a young murderer to justice. At the time, he had felt proud of his efforts. But lately, with the resurgence of interest in Tara Desai's murder and its vague connection to the Regina Crane investigation, Kyle had been reconsidering the events of that first murder...and he didn't like the questions he was beginning to ask himself.

"Sam, Judy, listen to me," he said in a soothing tone to the Porters presently, "I know you both are going out of your minds with fear right now. I don't blame you. So am I. Our kids are out there going through God knows what and it's hard not to let your mind go to the worst case scenario _but_...you need to keep it together. We're going to find them but you have to stay calm in the meantime."

Judy Porter stifled a sob. "That's easier said than done! What happens if you don't find them?" she cried, "You don't understand, Kyle! Lacey was so angry with us the last time we saw her. She said that the only thing she wanted was to be with that boy. She's determined to stay with him. If you don't find him then I know that we will _never_ see her again."

Kyle shuddered at the idea that Judy Porter's theory might hold some validity. Certainly if Lacey were obstinately steadfast about sticking with Danny then there was absolutely no doubt that Jo was of like mind. For all their differences in the past, the two girls were united in one firm cause...they were going to protect Danny Desai until their dying breath if it came to that. If their loyalty to him had been strong while they were children, it was unparalleled now.

If Danny allowed it, Kyle didn't have a single doubt that the girls would run with him forever. His single wild card in the whole scenario was Rico. He and Danny might be friends but he didn't share the same unshakeable bond with him that Lacey and Jo did. Once the adrenaline wore off and bleak reality and fear settled in, Rico would likely start to rethink his actions. Maybe he might be willing to break away from the group by then or, perhaps, turn them in himself. Kyle could hope for the best but, in the meantime, he couldn't wait for Rico Velazquez to break. He had to be proactive in his investigation.

That first night Jo had gone missing it hadn't taken him very long to discover their tiny, exclusive fort tucked away in the woods. Once Lacey's car had been discovered in the parking lot of their local park, finding their secret sanctuary had been a foregone conclusion. He didn't find too much out of the ordinary. Obviously, they'd left in a hurry. It had been littered with sleeping bags, non-perishable food items and, strangely enough, a box filled with Regina Crane memorabilia.

Kyle had confiscated the few things he'd found there and stored them in his home office to combed through later. Unfortunately, between interrogating Karen Desai, keeping Major Rollins mollified, fielding probing questions from the media and soothing Lacey's anxious parents and his equally anxious wife, he hadn't found much time to sift through the findings. He certainly couldn't understand what had been so fascinating to the teens about Regina Crane's old pageant days.

He wasn't being evasive when he told the Porters he didn't have any answers for them. In fact, with each hour that passed, Kyle found himself asking more and more questions. He had an uneasy feeling, an undeniable instinct that he was missing some pertinent fact. Jo and Lacey were so very steadfast about Danny's innocence, so unshakeable in their faith about him that Kyle couldn't help but wonder if they knew something that he didn't.

After he finally convinced the Porters to return home and wait for his call, Kyle spent the next hour on the phone with Mayor Rollins, reassuring the man that he would indeed have a swift resolution to the Desai case. The mayor didn't come right out and say it but the implication was there that his continued employment was contingent upon whether or not he could locate Danny Desai in a timely manner and bring him to justice. Kyle returned home, weary, exhausted and a little defeated and was not at all surprised when he walked through his front door and found his wife waiting. If he was expecting to find a little relief from his stressful day, Kyle reconsidered the possibility when he saw the look on Tess' face.

"Has she tried contacting you?" Tess burst out as soon as he cleared the door, "I keep calling her cell phone but it goes straight to voice mail."

"I haven't heard a word," Kyle sighed despondently, "I've told you before, sweetheart. I don't think she's going to call us."

She whipped away from him with a choked whimper. "This is your fault! I told you this would happen!" she mumbled thickly, "You never let up on Danny and I _told_ you this would happen!"

Her tearful accusations ate away at him despite his stoic countenance. "Tess, let's not have this argument again! Please! We need to be united on this."

"All she wanted was for you to give him one chance, Kyle! But you couldn't do that _one_ thing and now we might never see our daughter again!"

"The kid is being investigated for murder! What did you want me to do?"

Tess whirled around to face him again, her brow knit in an uncertain frown. "Do you really believe he killed that girl, Kyle?" she wondered softly.

He bowed his shoulders forward. "If you had asked me that same question three days ago, I would have told you 'yes' without hesitation. It had all seemed so straight forward. Now? I'm not so sure."

"Why not? Did you find another lead?"

"You know I can't talk to you about the details, Tess."

"You were the one who admitted to having doubts," Tess pointed out gently, "I'm only trying to understand why you're having them. What's happened in the last three days to make you second guess yourself?"

"I've been thinking about some of the details in the old Tara Desai murder," he admitted in a gruff tone, "There are some things that don't make sense. It's been bothering me."

Tess frowned at his mysterious wording. "What kind of things and what does that have to do with our daughter?"

"That's all I can say for now but I think it might explain why Jo took off with him," he sighed, "I need to do a little more digging first."

"Is that going to help you find her?"

"Maybe not," Kyle acknowledged, "But maybe it will help me to understand why she ran."

Fifteen minutes later, he shut himself away in his office and began meticulously examining each item he had brought back from the fort in the woods. The most interesting item he found was a gray, metal box that had been secured with a combination lock. He was immediately intrigued. As far as he knew, people only locked up items of value. He couldn't imagine what Jo, Danny and Lacey could have possibly stored away in that box but he did know they evidently didn't want anyone else to see it.

That knowledge alone was enough to spur Kyle into discovering exactly what the box held. Rather than waste his time trying to crack the combination, Kyle decided to return to the station with the box so that he could get into it quickly with the lock cutters they kept on hand there. Tess wasn't happy to know that he was leaving again so soon after returning home but Kyle had single-minded focus and he couldn't let himself be deterred by her obvious aggravation with him.

His determination paid off in the end and Kyle was opening the box less than an hour later. The last thing he expected to find inside was stacks of neatly bundled hundred dollar bills and pictures of Vikram Desai with a man he immediately recognized as Robert Crane, Regina Crane's late father. He well remembered the sensationalized mess that had followed the man's suicide. It was around that time Kyle began to suspect that Vikram might have been involved in some illegal activities. He didn't have any proof but his ongoing suspicions had been enough to sour the already shaky friendship between himself and Vikram.

He was stunned by the idea that there had been connection between Robert Crane and Vikram but not necessarily shocked. However, what truly surprised him was the realization that the box didn't belong to Danny as he had first suspected but to Regina Crane. Along with the money and the pictures, Kyle also discovered a letter which had been addressed to her from an address in Newport, Connecticut. That address had been circled and written beside it in his daughter's wide, looping handwriting was the question, "Who is Michael Patel and how does Regina Crane know him?" The note inside which had obviously been meant for Regina only heightened his curiosity.

Spurred on by the finding to do further investigation, Kyle decided to boot up his computer and execute a search for the address listed on the envelope. It didn't take him very long to discover that the address did indeed belong to a Michael D. Patel. Now, he found himself pondering the same exact question his daughter had asked...who the hell was Michael Patel and why had Regina Crane apparently been blackmailing him? Kyle immediately launched a search for Michael Patel of Newport, Connecticut.

There wasn't a great deal of background that popped up on the man but what information Kyle did find was more than enough. There was one key piece of evidence that literally stole his breath. He nearly fell from his chair altogether when the photo filled his computer screen. Kyle had to blink several times to be sure that he was actually seeing was what he _thought_ he was seeing...the unsmiling face of Vikram Desai staring back at him.

It was impossible to time date the photo so he had no idea how recently it had been taken. What he did know was that, according to his database, Michael D. Patel of Newport, Connecticut had Vikram Desai's face. The possibility of the man being an uncanny look alike seemed ludicrous so that left only one other plausible explanation. Michael Patel _was_ Vikram Desai. Somehow, some way, Vikram Desai had managed to survive his boating accident and had been living under the assumed name of Michael D. Patel ever since. Maybe that was the thing that had compelled Danny to skip bail in the first place. Perhaps he hadn't been _running_ at all. Perhaps he had gone to find his father instead.

Kyle gripped the edge of his desk, feeling suddenly clammy and queasy. That Vikram Desai might very well be alive was mindboggling in itself but the chance that Danny had gone after him and had, in essence, taken his daughter along for the ride filled Kyle with cold, stark fear. Vikram Desai had not been a very good man. He had been involved in a number of illegal activities at the time of his death and, in fact, had been believed to be a victim of mob violence as a result. Kyle could well imagine that if Vikram had been moved to fake his death there were people who very likely continued to want him dead. That was hardly the situation Kyle wanted his impressionable, teenage daughter to be thrust into.

He was still in the process of grappling with his disbelief when one of his deputies knocked softly at his door. Kyle quickly stashed away the box and lock cutter before motioning for the uniformed young woman to enter. He darted a panicked glance at her, his eyes inevitably drawn back to the picture on his computer screen. "What is it, Lorie?"

"There are two men here to see you, Chief," she informed him before adding with a meaningful look, "They're from the _FBI_."

Unable to even fathom why the FBI would be interested in talking to a small town cop from Green Grove, New York, Kyle merely nodded dumbly for Lorie to show the men inside his office because he was still too dazed to make much sense of anything. The instant the two entered his office, however, Kyle knew immediately that theirs was no casual visit. They obviously meant business. Both men were dressed crisply in dark, expensively tailored suits, black shoes polished to a glossy shine and wore matching, austere expressions. The lead agent didn't make any attempt at small talk at all but simply introduced himself and his partner and went on to explain the reason for their presence.

"Chief Masterson, my name is Agent Nicolas Barnes and this is my partner Agent Gianni Gallo," he said, presenting Kyle with his authentication, "We're here on the authority of the U.S. Government to order you to cease and desist all investigation into Regina Crane murder case and the suspect in question Daniel Desai. Everything concerning that case now falls under federal jurisdiction. We're going to need all your files and any evidence you've collected thus far."

"Excuse me?" Kyle scoffed, "This is a _local_ case! Since when is a sixteen year old murder suspect of interest to the FBI?"

"That's classified," Agent Barnes replied succinctly, "The files, if you will, Chief Masterson."

He barked a short laugh. "This is insane. Danny Desai is being investigated for the murder of a young girl found dead in her home," he reiterated, "He's a wanted fugitive under my jurisdiction so I can't, for the life of me, understand why that would interest the FBI. You're going to have to provide me with some official paperwork before I turn anything over to you."

"With all due respect, Chief Masterson, this is far above your pay grade," Barnes replied, "But I will grant you the courtesy of knowing that Mr. Desai plays a key role in certain interests for the FBI. We need to find him as soon as possible and we don't need your people in the way while we do it."

"And I still don't understand. Danny is just a kid. What kind of role could he play in anything?"

"He's not just any kid. His father was Vikram Desai."

Kyle leaned back in his chair with a shaky breath, a theory suddenly taking root in his mind with the FBI unprecedented infiltration of his case. "Ah...now we're getting somewhere. This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that Vikram Desai is actually still alive, would it?" he demanded in a frank tone. Kyle was simply taking a shot in the dark, trying to ascertain if there was some real validity to his suspicions.

The echoing silence he received in return was his answer. He watched both men's faces carefully for some sign of shock or disbelief but when their countenances remained as inscrutable as ever, Kyle didn't need any verbal confirmation from them. He knew he was right. "I thought that might not come as a surprise to you boys. Exactly how long has the FBI been aware of that fact, I wonder," he murmured aloud in speculation, "and why would it matter to them that he is?"

"That is also classified," Barnes said.

"Tell me this then," Kyle pressed, "Does the name Michael Patel mean anything at all to you?"

"Should it?" Barnes bluffed.

"It's only the new identity I suspect your people gave to Vikram Desai after you helped fake his death almost a year ago."

"You have a very fanciful imagination, Chief Masterson."

"It's not so big of a leap actually," Kyle considered, "I'm very well aware that Vikram Desai had deep ties to the mob. That would make him valuable to you, particularly if he were willing to turn informant and help you convict his former associates. From what I remember of Vikram, his first allegiance was always to himself so that kind of deal would be right up his alley, _especially_ if it kept him out of prison. What isn't entirely clear to me, however, is why you are so interested in his teenage son? Unless...Vikram's gone rogue and you think you can use Danny to draw him out."

Agent Barnes leaned over Kyle's desk, his demeanor becoming menacing. "We will take those files now, Chief Masterson," he stated in an implacable tone, "You no longer have any authority in this case. This is a federal matter."

"Like hell it is! You want my files? Get a warrant! I'm not handing over a single thing without one!" he informed them shortly, "Until then, get out of my face!"

Kyle had a difficult time getting his shaking under control once they were gone. His mind was veering crazily in a hundred different directions. Agent Barnes and Gallo hadn't really said anything to confirm his theories at all. He had little more than conjecture to go on and yet his gut told him that he was right. Somehow, the FBI was the reason Vikram Desai was still alive and now they were scrambling to cover up something, something that most assuredly involved Danny as the key. There had to be some reason they thought they could use Danny to bring Vikram to heel.

His mind turning frantically, Kyle immediately called for Lorie. She popped her head into his office a second later. "What can I do for you, Chief?"

"Bring me every available file we have on the Tara Desai murder case," he told her, "I think we might be missing something."

He was still neck deep in paper work two hours later. The most obvious problem that Kyle recognized was how consistent an 11 year old Danny had been with his confession. He had never once swerved from his story or missed a single note. He had been detailed, rote, methodical...almost as if he had practiced the words or had been _coached_ on what to say. At the time, everyone had assumed, including Kyle, that Danny's detached demeanor had merely stemmed from his lack of remorse and his pitiless execution of his crime. But thinking back on it now, Kyle wondered if what he had been seeing back then had been, in actuality, a traumatized, abused boy rather than a conscienceless sociopath.

So many things didn't make sense, things he had overlooked the first time in the interest of expediency. Other than the deep gouges in his hands, Danny had no defensive wounds. Because the case had been so straightforward, there had been no DNA collection, no extensive examination of the body by the medical examiner but the question had always nagged at him. How had an eleven year old boy managed to overpower and subdue a grown woman on his own, even if that woman had been mildly disabled and slight in build?

While he had been deeply embroiled in the case, he had been able to explain it away. Tara Desai had been caught off guard. Danny must have used the couch as leverage. He openly confessed his crime to his father, Jo and Lacey. They had all found Tara's body exactly where Danny had said she would be. Now, in hindsight, without all the pressure to make a conviction beating down on him, Kyle could really consider all the discrepancies he had dismissed the first time around.

Vikram Desai's almost too solicitous concern for Danny following the murder. The scratches on his forearm which he claimed to have received from his son. The way Danny had almost always looked to Vikram for confirmation and reassurance during every part of his confession. At the time, Kyle had assumed that Danny was seeking some kind of absolution from his father but now he wondered if it had been something a great deal more sinister.

What if Vikram Desai had really murdered his sister and then coaxed his impressionable, frightened 11 year old son into taking the blame for his crime? What if Vikram had been the murderer all along? The very idea seemed absolutely insane and beyond twisted but, once the theory surfaced in Kyle's mind, he had a difficult time shaking it off. That certainly would explain why the FBI was suddenly so eager to get their hands on Danny's case files. Kyle Masterson smelled a cover-up.

The only person who could provide him with the answers he needed, besides Danny himself, was possibly Karen Desai. Kyle knew he was going to have to go to her again if he wanted to discover the truth and, ultimately, find his daughter. He didn't hold out a great deal of hope that Karen would be at all cooperative in that regard, and, what little hope he did have that he could get her to talk lessened considerably when he pulled curbside to the Desai home.

Karen and Judy were out on the front lawn having a very heated and very loud verbal altercation. Judy was grabbing Karen's arm and screaming something at her that Kyle couldn't quite make out. He could tell from their body language though that it was only a matter of time before the disagreement turned physical. Karen angrily shook off Judy's hold and glowered at her dangerously.

Her angry retort drifted over to Kyle just as he threw open the door to his police cruiser. "...didn't kidnap her, Judy!" she was ranting belligerently, "In fact, the only thing you can hold against him is that he fell in love with your daughter! That's his _only_ crime!"

"This isn't some teenage romance gone awry!" Judy exploded fiercely, "Danny is a wanted fugitive, Karen! They are looking for him with guns and dogs! You don't think that the authorities aren't going to shoot first and ask questions later? I don't want Lacey to be caught in the middle!"

"Enough!" Kyle bellowed, quickly getting between them before the argument could degenerate further, "How is this helping anything? We shouldn't be at each other's throats!"

"I need my daughter back!" Judy wept hysterically, "She knows she can help me but, she won't do it!"

"Okay, both of you inside _now_ ," Kyle determined, "You're only succeeding in making a scene here. Do you want to make the 5 o'clock news?" He plucked them both by the forearm in a gentle but no nonsense fashion and began leading them back into the house.

Unsurprisingly, Karen mounted a protest. She twisted out from Kyle's hold and pinned both him and Judy with an enraged scowl. "I've got a better idea," she spat, "How about the two of you get the hell off of my property?"

"I can't do that, Karen," Kyle murmured with such surprisingly humility that it momentarily gave Karen pause, "I need answers and you're the only one who can help me with that."

Karen scoffed. "If I didn't tell her anything, what makes you think I'll say a word to you?"

Kyle decided to go straight for the point, his actions solely dictated by his heart and not his head. "How long have you known that Danny didn't murder Tara, Karen?" he asked her softly.

Both Judy and Karen went perfectly still at his question, their stormy expressions slackening into mutual masks of trembling shock. Judy sputtered helplessly in response, suspended somewhere between incredulous laughter and disbelief while Karen recovered a great deal more quickly. She straightened, her beautiful features softened with vulnerability and fear.

"Come in," she invited Kyle quietly, "We'll talk more inside."

Neither of them protested when Judy followed as well, already having recovered from her stupor enough to launch a full-fledged counterargument. "This is a joke, right?" she demanded of Kyle, "You're not actually buying into some bogus theory that Danny might be innocent, are you? He _confessed_ to the murder! He went to prison!"

For the most part, she was ignored, however, as Karen focused her unwavering attention on Kyle. "What do you know about that night?" she demanded without preamble.

"I was more interested in what _you_ knew," he countered.

"But you just said-,"

"-it's a theory," he emphasized, "One that I'm hoping you can shed more light on."

Karen fell back a step, her countenance darkening with mistrust. "Oh, I see what this is," she whispered, "This is your latest ploy for getting me to tell you what I know. It won't work, Kyle!"

"That isn't what this is about at all," he denied vehemently, "I've been going through the old case files, Karen, and there's so much about what happened that doesn't make sense. I didn't question it back then because I was too anxious to close the case but I'm questioning it now."

"Which helps Danny how?" Karen spat, "He's already served the time! He's lost that part of his childhood and he's never getting it back!"

"Maybe we can, at least, clear his name," Kyle countered, "Even with a clear motive, his guilt in Tara's murder isn't at all cut and dried."

"Motive?" Karen snorted, "Now you're reaching! What kind of motive could Danny have had for killing Tara? He was a little boy!"

"Because she was hitting him," Kyle provided, only to be inundated with slow, dawning horror when he began to realize that Karen knew nothing about that at all. "You had no idea, did you?" he uttered, "Tara had been physically abusing Danny for years."

Karen raked him with glistening blue eyes filled with vehement hatred. "That's a filthy lie," she hissed, "Get the hell out of my house! Right now!"

"It's not a lie, Karen. I heard this directly from Jo. She said she had seen it with her own eyes."

"No..." Karen whispered, shaking her head in denial and disbelief as she back up several steps, "No. That didn't happen. I wasn't _that_ drunk! I would have known. I would have known that."

Judy Porter spoke up for the first time after an indeterminable length of silence. When she did, her words were shaky and hoarse and laced with shame and regret. "He's telling you the truth, Karen," she said, "I suspected that might have been the case years ago myself. It wasn't anything overt but...I can remember the way Danny used to shrink back whenever Tara was near him and how he always seemed to be covered in bruises..."

Karen pinched her eyes shut. "I don't believe you."

"I should have said something all those years ago!" Judy cried mournfully, "But I was so preoccupied with my own problems. I had just found out that my husband had been lying to me about who he was for our entire marriage! I was devastated. It's not an excuse but...I truly _did_ convince myself that it couldn't be real!"

"You're telling me that you knew Tara was abusing my son and you did _nothing_?" Karen demanded in a contemptuous whisper, "You said _nothing_?"

"This isn't just on Judy," Kyle interjected before the accusations could begin, "We _all_ have failed Danny. I missed what was right in front of me! So did she." He turned a look down at Karen that was unyielding but free of recrimination. "So did _you_."

"Oh my God...oh my God..." Karen moaned painfully, "I used to wonder... I used to think that there was something." She started to dissolve into quiet, wracking sobs. "He used to beg me not to leave him alone with her," she wept, "But I always needed a drink more. My God! I was a horrible mother. No wonder he hated me."

"It's not too late for us to try and fix it now," Kyle rallied, "I need to know the truth, Karen, about what really happened to Tara that day...about where Danny is right now. I need you to tell me _all_ of it."

"I don't know what happened to Tara," she muttered in a thick voice, "Danny _never_ wanted to talk about it. But there are times when he will go into these uncontrollable rages or when he will shut down and just not talk at all. And he has terrible nightmares. Sometimes he'll wake up screaming in the middle of the night but he's never told me why."

"He never said anything to you about that day or...or about Vikram?"

Karen snapped a sharpened glance up at him. "Why would he say anything about Vikram?"

"He and Danny seemed incredibly close at one time," Kyle answered vaguely, "He was certainly very supportive of Danny following the murder."

"Yes, he was such a wonderful father, wasn't he?" Karen bit out in a wave of bitterness, "So wonderful he forgot about his own son and never looked back! You want to talk about someone who would have had motive for killing Tara? Vikram was your man. He hated her. The only reason he put up with her was because his father stipulated it and _no one_ disobeyed Chada Desai...not if they weren't prepared to pay the price for it."

"Why was there so much antagonism between Tara and Vikram?" Kyle wondered.

"It was their father," Karen said, "Chada Desai was a twisted bastard. I've never known anyone who could be so charming and so despicable at the same time...although Vikram did give him a run for his money. Chada used to pit Vikram and Tara against each other like they were junkyard dogs. It amused him to watch them tear each other down. You have no idea how grateful I was when that old man finally died. It's a shame his ghost continued to haunt my marriage." She looked up at Kyle with vacant eyes. "I don't understand. If you don't have any proof," she wondered dully, "What made you say what you did about Danny not killing Tara?"

"His confession was so rehearsed and polished," Kyle told her, "No child, no suspect period would ever be _that_ consistent and yet he didn't waver. And, other than the deep gouges to his hands, he didn't have a single defensive wound on him. I was going back through my notes and I realized that Vikram was there for every, single interview. I never talked to Danny one on one. I never got his version of things while he was on his own."

Judy made a small sound of protest. "With all due respect, shoddy police work doesn't automatically constitute Danny's innocence," she said, "Didn't we just establish that he had all the reasons in the world to want Tara dead?"

"And you _knew_ that!" Karen bit out accusingly, "But that hasn't stopped you from treating him like he was the worst thing to ever happen to Lacey!"

"I don't expect you to understand," Judy muttered in a rigid voice, "Lacey is walking on an emotional tightrope herself. She's been holding in far more than you could ever imagine. I don't want her to lose herself and I'm terrified that Danny is going to break open something inside of her that can't be fixed. I'm scared for my child, Karen."

" _So am I._ So maybe you can cut me some slack for trying to protect him!"

Kyle grunted in disagreement. "Karen, it's not that simple," he argued, "Danny is in serious trouble and not just from law enforcement either."

Karen appraised him with a wary, sideways stare. "What are you talking about, Kyle?"

He inhaled a shaky breath, preparing himself for the reaction he knew would follow his next words to her. "It's Vikram, Karen. He's still alive."


	31. Chapter Thirty

**Chapter Thirty**

"Are you mad at me?"

Lacey jumped at the question. The instant Jo and Rico left to make a vending machine run for their breakfast, Danny had seized the opportunity to corner Lacey as she emerged from the bathroom. As she had been doing for most of the morning, she immediately dropped her eyes at the query and tried to sidle around him. "No," she mumbled, "I'm not mad at you. Why would I be?"

He stepped in her path. "Well, you won't look at me," he pointed out in a quiet tone, "And you've barely spoken two words to me all morning."

In spite of his persistence, she moved around him towards the bed and busied herself with gathering together their scattered belongings. "It's not you, Danny. It's my thing," she answered vaguely, "I get cranky sometimes with my thing. That's all."

"You mean your period?" he clarified with an ironic squint.

Lacey cringed. "Really, Danny? Gah! It's so weird talking about this with you!"

"Is it because I'm a guy?"

"It's because you're my _boyfriend_ and there couldn't be a more unsexy topic for us to discuss!" she volleyed back, "So can we drop it, please?"

"Do you want to drop it because you're embarrassed?" Danny pressed gently, "Or because you're disappointed?"

Flinching at the subtle allegation, Lacey twisted to face him with a guilty, flustered expression. "Why would I be disappointed?"

"Because if you'd been pregnant no one could have kept us apart," he answered softly, "At least, that's how _I_ felt about it."

She hadn't been expecting his unreserved honesty on the subject and his willingness to make himself vulnerable battered down her defenses. She turned to regard him fully with a somber expression, her shoulders bowed in defeat. "Me too," she whispered in unreserved candor.

Lacey was grateful when he rushed forward to tug her into a tight embrace. At that moment, she would have been unable to ask him to hold her without promptly bursting into tears. Thankfully, Danny seemed to know what she needed without her having to request it.

"I know it's stupid," she sniffled into his shirtfront, "We're just kids ourselves! I'm not ready to be a parent. I don't even _want_ a baby right now."

"But you want a guarantee that we're going to be together and I can't give you that," Danny concluded miserably. When Lacey nodded in confirmation of that, he reached down to take hold of her hand. "Come on," he said, "We need to sit down and talk about this."

Although she acquiesced to his request, Lacey obstinately opposed the idea that they needed to discuss anything. "We _have_ talked about it, Danny," she told him after they sat down together on the closest bed, "I'm not leaving you so, if you're about to start that whole argument again, you can save your breath."

"Lace, as adorable as you are when you pout, you need to stop being so stubborn," he cajoled.

Unfortunately, his sweet words only increased her resolve. "I've made up my mind."

"Have you really thought about what that means, Lacey? No prom. No graduation. No college." He listed the losses flatly and with no attempt to soften the brutal reality of what lay ahead. "We won't be able to stay in one place for too long. You will be forced to lie to _everyone_ you meet. You will be looking over your shoulder every minute of every day. We'll never have a normal life or do normal things. We might never have kids. And, if we're ever caught, you're going to go to prison right along with me."

It was clear from the way Lacey flinched with each statement that she wasn't immune to the grim picture he was painting. When stated so frankly, it was difficult not to consider what a dreary future they were both contemplating. They weren't about to embark on some wild, romantic adventure. In truth, they were about to test the bonds of their relationship and stretch them beyond their limit.

"Why are you telling me this?" Lacey mumbled glumly, "Are you trying to scare me into running away from you?"

"I'm not trying to scare you. I'm stating the facts. If you stay with me, Lacey, this is what you get."

"You're missing one important part though."

"What's that?"

She laced her fingers with his. "We'll be together."

He favored her with a wistful, half smile and leaned over to press a brief kiss to her temple. "That's the only thing that makes all of this worthwhile for me. Even though I know that none of this is fair to you, I don't want you to leave. I honestly don't know if I could do this without you, Lace."

"But Rico and Jo are another story, aren't they?" Lacey murmured, easily discerning what he had left unspoken.

"Don't get me wrong," he sighed, "I'm glad they're here and their support has meant everything in the world to me but, I can't let them ruin their lives, _especially_ Jo. She's suffered so much because of me already. I can't ask her to sacrifice anymore. They need to go back home. There's no other way that this can end for them."

"Who needs to go back home?"

Danny and Lacey swiveled around at Rico's question just as he and Jo finished clearing the door. He was briefly distracted from answering the question when he noticed the plastic bag filled with snacks that Jo held. "What's all that? Did you clear out the entire machine?"

His sarcasm provoked an eye roll from Jo. "We thought we would get some extra for the trip so we won't have to make too many stops and draw unnecessary attention," she explained. Jo set down the bag and turned to consider Danny and Lacey with a probing stare. "So what were you guys talking about when we came in?"

"You know what we were talking about," Danny replied softly, "You and Rico have to go back to Green Grove. There's no other way."

Jo compressed her lips tightly, a sure sign that she was getting aggravated. "We've already covered this, Danny, and the answer is no. No need for a rehash."

"Listen to me before you get up on your high horse," Danny replied with a faint smile, "If we find my dad then everything I'm about to say to you might be a moot point. But, if we don't... You and Rico _cannot_ keep running with me. It's not fair and I won't ask you to do that."

Rico went to stand alongside Jo in a show of solidarity. "You're not asking us. We're volunteering. We gave our word that we would stick with you."

"And I appreciate that," Danny replied, "I really do. I never could have gotten this far without your help but this is as far as it needs to go. No matter what happens today, I want you guys to go back home."

Jo was visibly agitated by the request. She was unable to imagine returning to Green Grove without him. "What about you? What happens to you after we leave? How are you going to get by on your own?"

"I'll be fine," he reassured her, "I won't be alone." He offered Lacey a brief smile. "My girl will be with me. We'll find a way to make it work."

"So you're fine with Lacey staying with you but it's unacceptable for me and Rico?" Jo choked out in accusation, "How does that work? She can make the sacrifice but we can't?"

"I'm far from being 'fine' with her staying but...it's different with me and her and you know that, Jo."

"But you and Lacey are my family," Jo whispered thickly, "I can't turn my back on you, Danny. Especially now. I already failed you once. You don't deserve any of this. You need people who are going to be on your side! Please don't ask me to abandon you now."

"That's not what you're doing. I don't feel like you're turning your back on me at all. And what you just said is the exact reason I'm asking you guys to do this. You're my family too. Jo, you deserve to be happy after everything you've been through! I want what's best for you both...and this is _not_ it."

"What if I never see you and Lacey again? How am I supposed to be okay with that?"

Danny and Lacey exchanged an anguished look filled with unvoiced doubt. The future they were contemplating was filled with unknown variables. Even if they never saw Jo again, would it be safe for them to send her a letter or a postcard? Would there ever be any more contact between them at all? They couldn't advise Jo on how she was supposed to be okay when they didn't know how _they_ were going to be okay either.

The fear of that unknown had Lacey bursting out in blind reassurance, "We'll find a way, Jo. I don't know how yet but, we'll find a way. We _will_ see each other again."

Jo grasped onto that promise desperately even while she knew that this would be their goodbye. The probability of them being together again was beyond remote. There was every likelihood that today would be the last time she would ever see either of them again. She would return to Green Grove with Rico and try to resume a life without them in it and they would go on the run and spend the remainder of their days hiding from the law if Danny's name wasn't cleared before then. It was a bleak outlook, one that Jo didn't want to contemplate too closely.

"Okay..." she sighed shakily as she tried unsuccessfully to keep her tears at bay, "...I guess this is it then. After we leave this room, everything changes."

Lacey and Danny immediately shifted to their feet to wrap their arms around her in a group hug as she dissolved into tears. They gripped each other in a vise-like hold, as if they meant to meld their three bodies into one. "We won't say goodbye, okay," Lacey whispered, "That's too final and I won't believe that this is the end for us."

"It won't be the end," Danny vowed, "I won't let it be."

Lacey noticed Rico over Jo's shoulder, shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other and watching them with a mixture of sadness, admiration and yearning. She beckoned him closer. "Get over here, Rico. You may be new to the group but you're a part of this too." Jo and Danny proved their agreement with that statement by opening up a space for him. It was a long, long time before the four of them stopped hugging each other.

Afterwards, when their emotions were better controlled, they did one last sweep of the motel to make sure they'd left nothing behind and then finally checked out shortly after 9:00 a.m. Rico gamely volunteered to drive that morning because he knew that Danny and Lacey were too exhausted to take up the task themselves. Consequently, Jo took the passenger seat while Danny and Lacey cuddled together in the back.

They stretched out lengthwise on the seat with Lacey pressed back into Danny's chest while he did his part as a dutiful boyfriend and lightly massaged her cramping abdomen. Lacey reached up to twirl her fingers through the short, curling waves of his hair in between tender kisses and soft whispers. Both of them were acutely aware that they were likely enjoying the last few moments of peace they would know for a long time to come. They had every intention of savoring every second. Eventually, they fell asleep that way, tangled up together as closely as their cramped confines would allow.

Jo swiveled around in her seat to favor them with an affectionate smile. "They look pretty perfect together," she remarked to Rico, "I can't believe I'm going to miss them getting married and having their first baby together."

"They're only sixteen, Jo. I think that's a long way off."

She settled back into her seat with a discontented sigh. "Doesn't matter. I won't be around regardless."

"It might be for the best," Rico considered, "Danny was right. We weren't going to be able to run with him forever. I miss my folks and I know you do too. He and Lacey are really going to have a hard road ahead of them."

"Yeah, I know. And you're right. I do miss my parents." She angled another wry look over her shoulder at her sleeping friends. "They're still pretty freaking perfect together though. I'm glad they'll have each other." Her features brightened with a satisfied grin. "I'm actually the one who set all of that in motion. Not bad if I do say so myself."

"Good for you. Personally though, I'd rather they look less 'perfect' and buckle up for safety instead," Rico replied tartly, "They shouldn't be laid out across the seat like that. Seatbelts are a requirement by law, not an option."

The genuine annoyance in his voice wrung a stunned laugh from Jo. "Okay then." She expected him to fall into grumpy silence after that but was surprised when he posited a question instead.

"Jo...can I ask you something?"

"Sure. Go ahead."

He glanced at her several times, as if weighing the wisdom of voicing the aforementioned question aloud. Finally, after waging an internal struggle, he shook his head and said, "Nothing. Just forget it."

"What? What do you want to ask me?"

Rico shook his head dismissively. "I'm probably not going to get the answer I want anyway," he muttered.

Jo threw him a puzzled glance. "What's with you today? You're super crabby."

"I am not crabby."

"I figured you might say that. Crabby people don't usually know they're crabby," Jo replied, impishly throwing one of his most famous axioms back at him.

His expression soured even further. "Yeah, you're not funny at all, Jo."

She sobered a bit with his reply. "Seriously, Rico. Why are you in such a mood?"

"I guess I'm just wondering."

"Wondering what?"

"Wondering why it's okay for Danny and Lacey to be together but not us," he stated flatly.

Jo snapped her mouth shut in surprise. "Oh. You're wondering _that_."

"You're so sure that they're going to work out and have this amazing future together even though their personal situation pretty much sucks at the moment," Rico declared, "And I just don't get it. You have all of this hope for them but none for us."

"It's different," she whispered lamely, "Danny and Lacey are different."

"Why?"

"Maybe because they've loved each other since they were four years old! I knew it before they did. They've always had that whole 'meant to be, star-crossed lovers' vibe to them."

"And we don't?" Rico concluded in a despondent tone.

"No. Not at all. You're my best friend."

"You mean like Lacey and Danny?"

"No, not exactly like that. The connection between us is unique. It's special in a way that's different from what I have with them."

"How is it unique and special? Help me understand!"

"I don't know!" she burst out only to lower her voice to a hiss when Lacey and Danny began shifting around in the back, "It just is, okay! Why are you grilling me like this?"

"Because you won't talk about it!"

"Talk about what?" He shot her a meaningful look before turning his irate glare back towards the road. Jo sighed. "You're upset about what happened last night, aren't you?" she concluded softly, "When we almost kissed."

"No, I'm not upset at all," he bluffed. She grunted his name in knowing exasperation. "Okay, okay, maybe I'm a little upset. Well, not so much upset as I am confused and frustrated. Not about the almost kiss," he rambled on in clarification, "I _wanted_ the kiss and I thought you wanted it too. But then this morning you just acted like none of it ever happened! That's the part that's driving me crazy."

"But nothing _did_ happen. Danny and Lacey walked in. Remember?"

"Yeah, I remember. But what would have happened if they hadn't walked in?" he challenged. She dropped her eyes and slouched in her seat which had Rico grunting his dissatisfaction. "You see? This is exactly what I mean! I don't know what you're doing or what you want, Jo. You _tell_ me one thing but then you go and _do_ the exact opposite!"

"Well, that's _your_ fault, you know!" she accused him hotly, "You're the one who had to kiss me and then screw everything up in my head! I had a very clear picture of us in my mind before you did that, Rico! _Now_ I can't stop thinking about your mouth or how cute you look when you smile and the adorable way you babble when you're nervous! _That's_ what's driving _me_ crazy!"

Rico blinked at her incredulously, his expression veering from brooding to smiling in an instant. "Wait a second. You think I'm adorable?"

"Oh my god, Rico! I just unburdened myself to you emotionally and that's the only thing you picked up from my whole rant?"

"Well, I think that part is important!"

"Yes, Rico," Jo huffed somewhat impatiently, "I think you're adorable. You're an attractive guy. Why do you find that so surprising?"

"I don't know. It just is, I guess. You've never said anything like this to me before. I mean, it's not like I have those smoldering good looks that Archie Yates has or that dark, mysterious bad boy thing that Danny has going or even that cocky, self-confident swagger that Tyler Louis has. I'm just me."

"You is pretty good, Rico. Besides, I'm not into smoldering bad boys with swagger. They're not at all my type."

"Not even Tyler Louis?" he pressed, shooting her a disbelieving glance, "You _did_ kiss him, Jo."

"He kissed me," she clarified, "And it was my first kiss. I think I'm entitled to be curious."

"That was your first kiss?" Rico asked with some measure of disappointment.

"Yep."

"So what did you think of it?" he wondered glumly.

Jo favored him with a timid smile. "That I liked my _second_ kiss a lot better."

It took him a few seconds to realize Jo was talking about him and, when he did, his sullen expression gave way to dumbfounded amazement. He whipped her with a stunned look. "Wait...what? What are you saying right now, Jo?"

"Okay, so I'm scared," she prefaced softly, "You have to promise me that we won't crash and burn, Rico, because this is a huge risk. I can't gamble our friendship away on a whim or a crush. If you really want to do this with me, you have to be sure that this is what you want."

"I _know_ it's what I want," he averred without hesitation, "Is it what you want?"

"I'm not opposed to it," she hedged.

"That's not a real answer."

"Like I told you before, I'm scared," she reiterated, "I know we have a good thing and I'm terrified of messing that up. But...at the same time, I want to try. I'm willing to put myself all in. I just need you to promise me that it will be okay...that _we_ will be okay no matter what."

"Jo, I'd like to think I'm a pretty smart guy but, I can't predict the future. I might fall into a sinkhole or be obliterated by a falling meteor or contract Legionnaire's Disease-,"

"-Why is this so oddly specific and random at the same time?" Jo interjected.

"The point is," Rico pressed on doggedly, "I can't promise that everything will be okay because I don't know that it will be. Us being together might be the greatest thing ever or it could be a mess. It's definitely a chance we're taking here. But, I can promise that you will always be important to me and that I will always want you in my life. I _can_ promise that I will always be your friend as long as you allow it. That's never going to change."

"For real?"

"You're stuck with me for life, Jo Masterson."

Jo pondered the sincerity of his words for a long time before she finally conceded in a small, muffled voice, "Okay."

Rico checked his automatic inclination to whoop with happiness and decided to clarify her response instead. "Okay to what, Jo? What are you saying? I need to hear the exact words."

"I'm saying we should try," she told him, "I want to do it. I want us to date and see where it goes."

She expected a great many reactions from Rico following that reply but Jo wasn't prepared for the moment when he abruptly veered the car into the lane closest to the median. A low scream of terror escaped her as they careened across the bright, yellow line as if they were suddenly involved in a high speed car chase. "What are you doing?" she cried out in a panic as he took them over the rumble strips and stomped the brakes, bringing the vehicle to a neck snapping halt.

The wild jostling was enough to rouse Danny and Lacey. They awakened with a sputtering protest of confused curses but Rico wasn't any more responsive to their dismayed horror than he was to Jo's. She was still yelling wildly at him, "What's the matter with you? Have you lost it?" when he hurled himself from the driver's seat and sprinted around to her side of the car. Before she could prepare for his next action, he had already ripped open the door and was yanking her from the passenger's side seat even while she continued to rant at him. Her strident reprimands became a muffled stream when Rico framed her face in his hands and sealed his mouth to hers in a fervent kiss.

From the backseat, Lacey and Danny grinned broadly as Jo, after a few seconds of flailing helplessly, finally relaxed and returned Rico's kiss with equal passion. Danny rolled down the window and cat-called at them, ignoring Lacey's hissing admonishments for him to leave them alone. "Go, Rico!" he teased, "It's about time you made a move!" Fortunately, Jo and Rico were too wrapped up in each other to acknowledge him at all.

After fielding the initial awkwardness and dozens of questions that followed, taking the necessary bathroom breaks, filling the tank with gas and bringing Danny and Lacey up to speed on what they had missed in the last hour, Danny decided to relieve Rico of his driving duties and the pairs switched places. For the leg of their journey Danny preoccupied himself between lighthearted conversation with Lacey and mercilessly teasing the new couple in the backseat. As long as he kept his mind deliberately focused on other things, he didn't have to think too closely on what lay ahead for him. Eventually, however, Jo and Rico succumbed to the lull of the moving car and Lacey fell quiet. Danny was forced to confront his brooding misgivings.

"Are you nervous?" Lacey asked softly upon his lapse into uncharacteristic silence.

Danny shrugged, his tense expression belying the indifferent gesture. "I'm not so sure if I'm nervous so much as I am dreading entire whole thing," he admitted.

Lacey frowned in surprise. "But why would you be dreading it? I thought this was what you wanted all this time, to finally confront your father about everything he's done to you."

"It _is_ what I want but, that doesn't mean I'm looking forward to it. I know that I'm not going to like anything he has to say. I'm hoping for the best but I'm expecting the worst. I guess I'm trying to prepare myself for it."

"What do you think is going to happen?"

"That he's going to confirm what I already know...that he never gave a damn about me or my mom and that we were both a means to an end for him."

"You don't think he ever loved you at all?"

"It's hard to think so when he's let me take the fall for his crimes twice already. He killed Tara and most likely he killed Regina too but _I_ am the one paying for his actions. Love doesn't factor in at all. I'm more _expendable_ to him instead."

"So why not just call the cops with an anonymous tip and wash your hands of him completely?" Lacey suggested, "You never have to see his face, Danny."

"Because I want him to know that he didn't destroy me," Danny whispered, "I want to look him in the eye and tell him that I'm happy despite everything he did. When we walk away from each other this time, I want it to be on _my_ terms, not his."

Lacey nodded her understanding even as she maintained her concern that he wouldn't gain the clarity and peace of mind that he was hoping to achieve. The remainder of the journey was made in relative silence. The closer they moved to their destination, the more somber the mood within the car became. By the time Danny finally passed the signage for the mountain resort entrance, he hadn't spoken a word in nearly half an hour and everyone in the car had fallen asleep.

They had reached the point where everything was about to change. No matter what he found up in that cabin, it was almost a guarantee that he wasn't going to be the same Danny coming out that he had been going in. The realization saddened him a little and for that reason he hesitated to wake the group. He drove three quarters of the way up the mountain and waited until he saw the number for the cabin posted on a roadside sign before he reached over to nudge Lacey awake.

"Babe? We're here."

With a grim expression, Lacey twisted around to jostle Rico and Jo awake as well. Darkness was beginning to fall as they made their winding approach. The sky was becoming a marbled canopy of hazy orange and shimmering purple that signaled the passing of dusk. While there were some light posts that lit their winding path up the mountain, they were few and far between. Mostly they had only their headlights to guide them, which made macabre shadow figures of the gnarled web of trees that flanked both sides of the narrow roadway. Even in the approaching dimness, the denseness of the forest was stark and it was impossible not to become paranoid about what sort of animals might be lurking just beyond the darkness.

Jo shuddered. "This is just the sort of place where you could hide a body," she remarked, "No one would ever find it."

"Ixnay on the entionmays of odiesbay," Rico replied in muttered aside, "That's not the kind of thing you want to contemplate when you're traveling up to a remote cabin in the middle of nowhere to confront a potential killer."

Despite Rico's attempt to be quiet and discreet, Danny wasn't oblivious to his or Jo's concerns. "Listen, when we get there, you guys don't have to come in with me," he reassured them, "In fact, I think it would be a good idea if you waited in the car."

"But why?" Lacey protested, "You shouldn't have to do this on your own, Danny!"

"I want to do it on my own," he insisted softly, "This is between my father and me."

They continued to climb and climb with occasional directions signaling them to the fact that they were getting closer. The cabin was conveniently located on one of the mountain's many crests, set back away from the main road. When they started up the gravel path that led towards the retreat darkness had fallen completely. Not even the moon was available to illuminate their path. The only light they had to guide them along the way were the headlights of the car. Tension within the vehicle reached an all time high. They approached the driveway with bated breaths, half expecting that Vikram Desai would be standing outside waiting for them. But...there was nothing.

The spacious driveway was conspicuously empty. The cabin, which was a looming, three story structure with large bay windows and a massive, surrounding deck, was eerily dark. It appeared forgotten and felt utterly abandoned. It certainly didn't strike them as a structure that had been recently occupied.

Lacey slumped down in her seat in disappointment. "The place looks empty. I don't guess he's here after all, Danny." she ventured a careful glance over at him, trying to gauge his reaction in the darkness. "I'm sorry."

Surprisingly, he shook his head at that, as if unwilling to accept defeat just yet. "I'm going to check it out first," he said, "If it's clear, then I'll wave you guys inside." Lacey swallowed her protest as he ducked from the car, knowing there was no reasoning with him now that he'd made up his mind.

Danny crept across the sturdy cross bridge towards the front door with a careful tread. Beneath it ran a natural brook that was fueled by rain water runoff. He couldn't see it but the rushing sound of the water created a buffer of sound between him and what was behind him, increasing his feelings of isolation. Danny had the option of using the key his mother had provided for him but, at the last second, he decided to test the door knob instead. He was only mildly surprised when he found the door unlocked. After giving Lacey, Jo and Rico a reassuring wave, Danny pushed open the door and let himself inside.

He clicked on the light closest to the entrance. The interior was decorated just as he expected it would be, in soft hues of brown and auburn and with kitschy mountain memorabilia. In contrast to its supposed emptiness, however, it was much warmer inside than Danny had anticipated. As he ventured deeper within, it was easy to conclude the reason for that. Despite the outside appearances, it was clear that someone had been there...and recently too. A newly opened beer bottle sat on the living room coffee table, the brown glass bottle still moist with condensation. Beside it, a half eaten sandwich and potato chips also remained. Danny felt his heart rate quicken in response.

As he crept inside even further, he snapped on more lights along the way, calling out tentatively for his father as he did. "Dad? Dad, are you here? There's no point in hiding anymore. You might as well come out and face me."

Knees trembling and heart thundering, Danny started to turn for the steps, his plan to take his exploration upstairs when the front door abruptly swung open. Startled, Danny lurched around, his body tensed with anticipation, only to slump forward seconds later when Lacey, Jo and Rico began filing through the door with matching, apprehensive expressions.

"What are you doing?" Danny hissed at them irritably, "I thought we decided that you would wait in the car until I said it was a go!"

Rico hitched a nod behind him. "Sorry, Danny. He didn't really give us much of a choice in the matter."

Scowling his confusion, Danny darted an impatient glance in the direction Rico indicated and was frozen in shock when he saw that the "he" in question is none other than his father, the long presumed dead Vikram Desai _and_...he was holding a gun.


	32. Chapter Thirty One

**Chapter Thirty One**

"So this is your plan?" Danny taunted bitterly as Vikram secured Rico's bindings, "To tie us up and hold us at gunpoint?"

"Shut up!" Vikram snapped, obviously agitated, "I need to think! I didn't want any of this! You never should have found me in the first place, Daniel!"

Since making his presence known, Vikram Desai had been acting with a chilling, mechanical thoroughness fueled by rising panic. Careful to keep his gunned trained on the four teens, he forced Rico to tie them each of them to a dining room chair. He strategically chose the boy out of the four of them because he was the one who displayed the most fear. Danny, Lacey and Jo were too familiar with him and they might try and appeal to his softer side. But the boy didn't have that same connection to him, which thereby made him potentially the most malleable in the group.

Fear of being shot or, worse yet, getting his friends shot compelled Rico to tie his best scout knots with the thick, woven rope Vikram provided. It was good for Vikram, who was satisfied that his hostages would remain secured but bad for the hostages who were already looking for a means to escape. Once he was satisfied that Lacey, Danny and Jo would have no chance of wriggling free of their bindings, Vikram also tied Rico to a chair as well. When he was finished, he went down the line and checked all wrists and ankle restraints for tightness and security.

"What are you doing right now?" Danny bit out, "You can't just hold us here!"

"Be quiet," his father hissed again, "I'm trying to figure out how to fix this mess you've made!"

"The mess _I_ made?" Danny balked.

Vikram stabbed an accusing finger in his direction. "You shouldn't be here. I thought we were done with this after Newport!"

The confirmation that Vikram had, indeed, deliberately dodged him was like a punch in the gut for Danny. If he had needed any confirmation that Vikram Desai was uninterested in his existence, that single statement obliterated all doubt. Danny didn't even know why he was surprised. Their father/son reunion was pretty on point with what he had expected, minus being held hostage. Yet, in spite of harboring those very low expectations, underneath his fear, confusion and anger, Danny was saddened by his father's decided lack of reaction to seeing him again...and he didn't count treating him as an inconvenient nuisance as a reaction. He hadn't expected that Vikram would greet him with tears and tender embraces but he'd definitely anticipated _more_ than being forcibly tied to a chair.

However, while Vikram didn't at all seem fazed by seeing Danny again, Danny hungrily drank in the sight of him. After all, the last time he had seen the man had been shortly before he had turned fourteen. He had spent the better part of a year believing Vikram was dead and struggling to process the unresolved emotions that had left within him. Even with all of his suspicions, a small part of him had continued to fear the possibility that he was wrong, that Vikram wasn't alive after all...that he would truly never see him again. But he _was_ alive and he was close enough for Danny to touch, close enough for him to discern that the man he remembered as his father was not the man before him presently.

It wasn't so much a physical transformation either. Vikram Desai didn't look too markedly different from the last time Danny had seen him. His dark hair remained just as abundant as ever. It was clipped closely to his head in the short, neat style he'd always worn. The one difference Danny noted was that now there were a few scant threads of gray hair beginning at his temples. There was that and also the fact that his eyes, which had once sparkled with mischief and intelligence, seemed dull and lifeless now. In spite of his preserved handsomeness, it was clear that the past few years had taken a toll on Vikram Desai's psyche.

From just the short period of time he had spent in his father's presence, Danny was able to discern that the charisma and self-confidence that had once surrounded Vikram like a vibrant aura had now been replaced with a dark shroud of anxious self-doubt. Gone was the Vikram Desai who had exuded an unwavering arrogance and easy charm behind a sexy smile and a smooth tongue. In his place was left a frightened, desperate man who was clearly experiencing a loss of control in every aspect of his life. He seemed like a man living on borrowed time who was very much aware of his limited options, although he hadn't yet come to terms with accepting them.

"What are you going to do with us?" Danny demanded again, "This is insane! You can't hold us here forever!"

"I need time!" Vikram burst out, surging to his feet to begin a restless pacing across the living room. "I'm going to figure it out," he mumbled, mostly to himself, "I just need time."

He lacked a definitive plan. Beyond herding the four teens into the cabin and detaining them there Vikram didn't know what he was going to do. When he had first spied the headlights bouncing up the graveled patch of road, his first fear had been that the Feds had finally found him. His relief at the discovery that it was only a single car was short-lived. Regardless, Vikram recognized he was going to need to do something about his uninvited visitors. He originally thought he would take the path of least resistance and simply kill the unsuspecting travelers who had, apparently, taken a wrong turn. Now that he was so close to freedom, he couldn't take the chance of anyone jeopardizing that. The last thing he had expected was to see his son climb from the car.

Vikram had watched Danny long enough to recognize him almost immediately, even in little more than the gloom of hazy headlights. His hair was shorter now and he had at least a day's growth of faint, unshaven facial hair but there was no mistaking his identity. And, just like that, Vikram's initial plan was no longer an option. He was further dismayed by the realization that Danny hadn't come alone either. After that, he had been left with few options.

Restraining them, however, did little to lessen Vikram's growing agitation. He still had to figure out what the hell to do with them! By mid morning the next day, he planned to be well on his way into Canada and, from there, board a plane with the intention of disappearing into Europe. He was too close to let anything or _anyone_ jeopardize his plans. Mostly ignoring their presence, he split his attention between darting occasional paranoid glances out the window and frantic, muttered phone calls to his contact. He didn't want to contemplate what he might be forced to do if he couldn't turn the situation around in his favor.

Meanwhile, unaware that his father was genuinely vacillating over whether or not to kill them, Danny watched Vikrams's frenetic movements from one end of the cabin to the other with a mixture of anger and disgust. Unwilling to be ignored any longer, he ground out, "So this is it? You let me believe you were dead for almost a year and this is all I get from you, Dad? To be treated like an afterthought and tied to a chair?"

Vikram paused in his nervous pacing to toss Danny a harried look. "This wasn't what I wanted," he muttered again, "You weren't supposed to find me, Daniel, but you have always been too determined for your own good! It wasn't supposed to happen this way."

"Yeah...obviously not," Danny grunted.

"You don't understand. I was doing it to protect you, son. I _am_ doing this to protect you."

"Holding me at gunpoint is protecting me?" Danny snorted skeptically, "Are you kidding me with that argument? Dad, I'm not that same eleven year old kid you manipulated five years ago. You're going to have to try something new."

Challenged and strangely affronted by the retort, Vikram grabbed one of the last remaining dining chairs and dragged it in front of Danny. "Okay then. You want honesty?" he challenged, "I'll give you honesty." He dropped down in the chair and looked his belligerent son directly in the eyes. "There are people who want me dead, Daniel, dangerous people, and they will take down anyone they have to in order to make that happen," he said, "If you're around me, then that puts you in danger. You'll become a target for my enemies and I can't have that."

"Oh, so _now_ you're concerned with my well being? Wow, Dad. I'm touched."

"I've always been concerned about you. I didn't want to be a burden to you or your mother."

"So you've stayed away all these years for my benefit?" Danny mocked, "Is that what you're saying? You faked your freaking death for _us_?"

"Yes!"

"How do you say that with a straight face while you're holding me and my friends hostage?" he scoffed, "Do you think I'm stupid or do you actually believe the lies you're spinning?"

"I'm not going to hurt you, Danny," Vikram told him, "If I wanted that, I could have done it already. This is only to buy me the time that I need to get away. My contact won't be here until the morning. I need to be sure you won't follow me and this is the only way."

"Then let them go," Danny said, jerking a nod towards his friends, "They don't have any stake in this. They only came along to support me. Just let them leave and then it can be you and me."

Before Lacey, Jo and Rico could even begin to mount a strident protest over that suggestion, Vikram was already rejecting Danny's request outright. "I can't do that. They'll go to the cops and then it will be over," he predicted flatly, "It hasn't been so many years that I don't remember that little Jo over there is the daughter of the police chief. I won't take any chances."

"Kyle Masterson was once your friend!" Danny reminded him, "Does that even matter or were you pretending with him just like you pretended with everyone else?"

"I don't have friends anymore. I burned those bridges long ago, son. There's nothing left."

Lacey emitted a small, embittered mumble that was fueled by fear and anger. "Oh really?" she challenged softly, "What about your _son_? Is he _nothing_ , Mr. Desai? Danny is facing murder charges because of you! You do know that, right? Are you just going to leave him behind to pay for your crimes?"

Vikram favored her with a hard smile. "Lacey, Lacey, Lacey..." he tsked with a wry laugh, "You haven't changed much since you were a little girl. You always _did_ have a mouth on you. Your friend Regina had that same problem."

"Don't you dare speak to her right now!" Danny seethed, sensing the unspoken threat in his father's words, "Don't you even _look_ at her!"

"Relax," his father scoffed, "I have no intention of hurting your little girlfriend." He glared at Lacey. "But she needs to shut up about things she knows nothing about!"

"I know you let Danny go to prison for a murder you committed!" Lacey flung back in spite of Jo and Rico's panicked efforts to shush her, "That's all I need to know!"

Vikram's expression abruptly shifted from one of smug tolerance to one of nervous uncertainty. He surged to his feet and resumed his maddened pacing, darting a look at Danny that was half accusing, half resigned. "So you told them what happened that day, huh? I suppose you had to break eventually."

Danny regarded him with an implacable stare. "I'm not going to keep secrets from the people I love anymore. I won't be you."

"And how will telling the truth benefit you now?" his father challenged, "Too much time has passed and you've already served your sentence. As far as law enforcement is concerned, I'm a ghost. You won't help yourself by rehashing what happened and recanting your confession now."

"I don't plan to recant anything," Danny told him, "Five years ago, I made the shortsighted decision to lie for you and I'll live with the consequences of that choice for the rest of my life. But I'll be damned if I take the blame for what you did to Regina Crane!"

Vikram's features darkened with rage at the mention of Regina. He brandished his weapon like a pointer, causing Jo, Rico and Lacey to shrink and recoil in fear of the gun discharging due to his carelessness. Seemingly impervious to the uneasiness he was provoking, Vikram exploded, "Don't make her out to be some sweet little innocent, Daniel! She got what she asked for! That little bitch pushed me to my limits every time! I told her to stay away from you! I warned her not to play around with me. The problem with Regina was that she didn't know when to back off! She was like her idiot father that way!"

Danny swallowed, his pulse fluttering rapidly in his throat. Whatever miniscule hope he'd secretly held that Vikram had not murdered Regina Crane after all died an ignominious death with his father's words. "So, it's true," he managed thickly, "You really _did_ kill her."

"She didn't leave me any options."

"Do you hear yourself right now?" Danny cried, "She was in _high school_!"

"You don't understand what she was trying to-,"

"It was _you_ that night in her house," he continued in growing disillusionment, "You tried to knock me out. You _left_ me there."

"I didn't have a choice!" Vikram insisted, "I only came for one reason and you threw everything off! What were you doing there in the first place?"

"Isn't that what you wanted? Didn't you use her to lure me out there?"

"I already told you," Vikram sighed, "I wanted you as far away from my mess as possible. All I've wanted this whole time was to keep you safe, Daniel."

"You killed her," Danny whispered, "You snapped her neck and then you walked away like nothing ever happened...just like you did with Tara."

"She would have ruined everything!" Vikram cried, "She was trying to destroy me...just like her father and my backstabbing sister!"

Lacey whimpered. "She was seventeen years old! She was just a kid!"

Vikram barked out a laugh, callous and cold. "Regina was no child. She was only too eager to take up her father's mantel. All I wanted was her father's account numbers because he was stupid enough to give them to her before he killed himself! She didn't have to die but she was greedy and decided to extort me instead of handing over what was _mine_! She was an opportunist and a slut. She played the game and she lost."

Rico squirmed in his seat, discomfited by the fanatical gleam in Vikram Desai's eyes. "Oh wow...you're completely insane, aren't you?" he uttered, half in horror, half in fear.

Amazingly, Vikram laughed at that. "I don't believe we've had a proper introduction yet," he said, as if he were casually meeting one of Danny's friends in a typical, run of the mill setting, "I'm familiar with Jo and Lacey but, you're a new one. Rico...is that right?"

"H...How did you know my name?" Rico stammered.

"I know more than you think." He turned a wry glance towards his son. "I've been watching you for quite a while. I never dropped out of your life despite what you think. I've always looked after you, son."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You served _five_ years in juvenile detention for murder, Daniel," his father said, "That's not typical at all. You should have been locked up at least until you were eighteen. Why do you suppose you weren't?"

Danny glowered at him with flinty eyes. "I was released on good behavior."

"You were released because it was a deal _I_ negotiated with the Feds," Vikram clarified, "You see, I have a lot of information they want and that gives me a lot of leverage with them but...they treat me like I'm their puppet and I'm no one's puppet."

"You're telling me that the _FBI_ arranged for my early release as a favor to _you_?" Danny scoffed, "What kind of drugs are you on, Dad?"

Vikram dropped down onto the sofa with a shrug, the gun still gripped in his hand but resting on his thigh now. "You don't have to believe me," he said, "But you've come this far, so you might as well know the whole story.

"Robert Crane and I worked for a very powerful man," Vikram began, "He was a mutual client of ours who was involved in quite a few illegal business transactions. Our job was to clean up his books and make him look squeaky clean to the government. In addition to this man's less than savory business pursuits, he was also in the business of making people who double-crossed him disappear.

"I liked the life and I liked the money but, I was in over my head and I knew it," he continued, "I started thinking about getting out. Robert said he wanted the same thing. We started siphoning out money from our client's account into several off shore banks. When we finally had enough, we were going to disappear with our families and live out the rest of our lives in comfort."

Deciding to humor Vikram in his convoluted tale, Danny asked, "So what happened to that plan?"

"Your traitorous bitch of an aunt happened!" Vikram spat, "I made the mistake of introducing her to Robert _once_ and she took it from there! First, she somehow convinced Robert to fall for her poor, broken spirit act and he 'fell in love with her.' Then, she convinced him that I was planning to stab him in the back and leave him holding the bag with our employer. He sided with her and turned on me! He was going to lead the Feds right to me!"

"So that's why you and Tara were arguing about that day," Danny murmured, "Because Tara had convinced Robert Crane to turn you over to the Feds."

"She actually thought he was going to leave his wife and kid for her and they were going to make a 'life' together! She was delusional and she was screwing around with my family!"

"And you had to make her pay," Danny concluded dully.

"I was going to take you and your mother away to a better place," he whispered, "I was going to be the husband and father you both deserved and we were going to be the family we used to be. I thought we might even give you a brother or sister eventually. I was going to give you a better family than I had."

"Wow..." Danny jeered dryly, "I had no idea you had such a noble heart, Dad."

"I'm not a perfect man, Daniel," Vikram said, "I've made mistakes and I've used some bad judgment but, that doesn't negate the fact that I truly wanted you and your mother to be happy."

"And you thought you could achieve that by lying to us and manipulating us for years?" Danny cried, "You killed your own sister! You let me go to prison for her murder! You faked your death and then you killed again! That goes way beyond 'bad judgment!' You're sick! You're a sociopath!"

"Then I guess I have that in common with my father." He regarded Danny with a thoughtful stare. "And _you_ have that in common with _me_."

"I am _nothing_ like you," Danny choked bitterly.

"You are _everything_ like me," Vikram countered, "because, when it comes right down to it, you'll do whatever you have to do to survive. That's how I knew you'd get through juvie. And that's how I know you won't go to prison for Regina. You'll find a way to turn it to your advantage." He smirked with menacing fervor. "The Desai men always do."

Two hours later, Vikram finally lost the battle to keep his eyes open and, gradually, his head began to roll and loll until he finally dropped off into a deep sleep. He kept the gun loosely gripped in his hand, however, unwilling to relinquish that small bit of security even in slumber. In the minutes of silence that elapsed following, the four teens traded careful glances between them, trying to determine if it was safe for them to speak or not.

Finally, Jo asked in a near inaudible whisper, "Is he really asleep?" As if offering confirmation to her question, a quiet snore escaped from Vikram. Jo slumped in relief. "Thank God."

Danny immediately began tugging at the ropes around his wrists in hopes of loosening them. "We need to get out of here before he wakes up," he whispered.

Lacey, Jo and Rico followed his example and began pulling at their own restraints as well. After a few moments, however, it became evident that their efforts were fruitless. Jo blew out a frustrated huff. "Damn it, Rico! How tight did you tie these things?"

"I'm sorry! I was once a Boy Scout," he burst out in a low hiss, "I wanted to do a good job! I didn't want him to shoot us!"

Danny released a jaded grunt. "He's not going to shoot us. He's too busy trying to convince me that's he's some kind of martyr."

The anguish and cynicism in his voice made Lacey ache to comfort him. She couldn't imagine what was going through his mind at that moment but, knowing Danny, it probably wasn't anything good. "Do you think he was telling the truth about everything he said?" she wondered aloud.

"It's possible," Danny considered with a shrug, "The Feds being involved could explain how he managed to fake his death and assume a new identity. He had to have help."

Rico murmured his agreement. "What about the rest of it?" he asked, "About Robert Crane and Tara and getting you released early from juvie? Do you think he might be telling the truth about that too?"

"His version of it," Danny scoffed, "I guess I know where I got my talent for lying from."

Lacey made a small sound of protest. "Don't do that, Danny! Don't let him get inside your head! You are _nothing_ like him!"

Jo vehemently reiterated Lacey's declaration. "It's pretty clear that your dad is unstable, Danny," she said, "I don't know what happened to him but that's not the guy I remember from my childhood!"

"Maybe that guy never existed at all," Danny mumbled, "Maybe he's been pretending all along."

"Whatever the case, we can't stick around here to figure it out," Jo replied, "He said he was waiting for someone to arrive in the morning. I don't think he's just going to let us walk out of here after that. Danny's right. We need to get out of here now."

They worked for several hours to loosen their ropes, mostly succeeding in chafing their wrists to the point of bleeding. It proved to be a long, tedious affair, saturated with tension and fear as they would freeze every few seconds whenever there was the slightest change in Vikram Desai's breathing. Sometime near dawn, when they were all drooping with exhaustion, both Lacey and Rico finally began to make some headway with their ropes. Lacey mostly worked with quiet, furtive efficiency while Rico exclaimed his excitement in a hushed murmur just as Vikram started to rouse from sleep.

The warning from his friends came too late. Rico never saw the blow coming. As soon as he tore one of his wrists free, Vikram brought the butt of his gun down across his temple. The sickening, muted thud of metal colliding with flesh and bone reverberated across the living room. Rico slumped forward in his chair without another sound, knocked out cold. Jo and Lacey screamed in reaction to the swift, brutal action while Danny bellowed at his father not to hurt Rico. When Vikram pressed the barrel of his gun to the top of Rico's skull, his finger pressing lightly against the trigger, the girls began to sob uncontrollably.

"Shut up!" he screamed at them all wildly, "I can't hear myself think!"

Immediately, Lacey and Jo made an effort to stifle their terrified whimpers by compressing their lips as tightly as they could, terrified that if either of them emitted another sound he would murder Rico right in front of them. Outwardly, Danny appeared a great deal calmer but inwardly he was no less distraught than they were. The single thing that helped him maintain a level head was the knowledge that his father would remain relatively calm as long as he did.

Danny bounced a wary glance between his father's face and the gleaming barrel of the gun. "I...I think you should put the gun down, Dad," he managed in a stammering whisper, "I think you should do that before someone gets hurt..."

"No, I should kill him. I should kill him," Vikram muttered to himself again and again, "It would be less trouble for me. It would definitely be less trouble!"

"Dad, please..." Danny begged desperately, "Don't do that. He only came here to help me. Please don't kill him. Please..."

After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, Vikram finally lowered the gun and relaxed his stance. "You have to be good from now on, Daniel," he admonished Danny as he knelt behind an unconscious Rico to re-secure his free wrist, "I can't have you trying to run again. That would place me in a very bad position. You don't want to do that, do you? You don't want to put your father in a bad position?"

"We won't run," Danny promised, "We won't try it again."

Jo tentatively whispered Rico's name, hoping he might come around with some verbal stimuli. She whimpered in dismay, however, when she noticed the rapid trickles of blood that ran across his eyebrow and began to saturate the leg of his jeans. "Mr. Desai, please..." she wept, "You have to let us go now. He's hurt really bad. He needs a doctor."

"He'll live," Vikram stated coldly, "For now."

Danny flinched, true, cold fear entering his heart for the first time since his father had taken them hostage. "Are you going to kill us?"

"Not you. I want to protect you, Daniel. You're the best part of me. But I can't guarantee what happens to them."

His words provoked a round of quiet, tearful sobs from Jo while Lacey stubbornly stifled her need to cry and renewed her furtive efforts to loosen the ropes around her wrists. She worked her fingers furiously while Danny, once again, attempted to reason with his homicidal father. "Dad, you can't do that," he said, "Don't you have enough blood on your hands? We will walk away. We will never tell anyone you were here and you can disappear just like you planned."

Vikram knelt down before Danny and reached out his free hand to caress Danny's cheek in a surprisingly affectionate gesture. "You're a good liar, Daniel, but you're not _that_ good."

"Daddy, please..." He beseeched his father in a childlike voice, addressing him with an endearment he hadn't used since he was a small boy. "If you hurt them, I could never forgive you. You know that, right?"

"Maybe I should take you with me," Vikram considered aloud, "Then we would have time to fix everything that went wrong between us. You'd like that, wouldn't you? We could get back all the years we lost together. We could make it right."

"No!" both Danny and Lacey burst out simultaneously. Lacey continued to twist her way free of the ropes around her wrists. She and Danny traded a brief look before he turned back to Vikram and stated in the most definitive tone possible, "I'm not going anywhere with you."

Vikram withdrew his hand with a wry chuckle and straightened. "You think you're in love," he told Danny flatly, "You imagine that you can never be happy without her and maybe you're right. But you'll destroy her in the end...just like I destroyed your mother and my father destroyed my mother. It's better for a Desai man to be alone."

Lacey managed to loosen her confines just enough to slip one of her hands free when Vikram raised his gun and leveled it at her. Jo began to whimper anew while Lacey froze in fear when she found herself confronted with the barrel of Vikram Desai's gun. Vikram regarded her with a vacant smile. "It would be a kindness to her to end it right here."

"No, no, no, no, no..." Danny begged hysterically, "Don't kill her! Don't take her from me, please!"

"It's okay, Danny. I love you," Lacey whispered impulsively, "Whatever happens, please don't blame yourself." There were many things she wanted to say, pleading for her life being near the very top of her list but, if these were to be her final moments, she wanted to make her last words count. She barely registered Danny and Jo's frenzied screaming as she squeezed her eyes shut in grim anticipation of Vikram Desai's bullet.

It never came.

Lacey opened her eyes. Gradually, she became aware of the faint sound of police sirens in the distance. Everything happened in a blur of activity after that. Vikram did a quick check out the window, which confirmed his worst fears. There was a processional of official police vehicles complete with flashing lights making their way up the gravel road towards the cabin. He deftly stuffed the gun into the waistband of his trousers and ducked into the kitchen to grab a knife.

When he ran over to Danny, he, Lacey and Jo half expected Vikram to stab Danny to death right then and there but instead he started cutting Danny free. While he gave Danny strict instructions about what he expected once Danny was free, Lacey bounced a frantic glance about her, looking for something heavy with which to hit Vikram over the head. Even with the police on their way, Lacey couldn't imagine they would have a swift rescue. No doubt there would be a long standoff between Vikram and the cops and, in the end, some of them might be killed before it was over.

Cops or no cops, she knew she had only one chance if she wanted to get herself and her friends out of this alive. She wavered in her plans a little when Vikram ordered Danny to his feet with the warning that if he didn't cooperate, he would shoot Jo, Rico and Lacey without compunction right in front of him. When Danny gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, Lacey knew to hold back from making a move. Instead, she waited until Vikram began dragging Danny at gunpoint towards the back deck of the cabin before nimbly wriggling her second hand free from its binding.

As the sirens grew closer and closer, Lacey hastily loosened the ropes around her ankles with some half formed plan of charging after Danny and Vikram. She paused in the action when she remembered Jo and Rico. She threw them both desperate glances, her gaze lingering on an unconscious Rico as she was torn between staying and helping her immobilized friends and going after Danny. Thankfully, Jo made the decision for her.

"We'll be fine," she told Lacey, "Go! Find Danny before something awful happens! His dad's nuts!"

Lacey lurched forward to give Jo a quick, impulsive hug and whispered, "We'll see each soon," before taking off in the same direction as Vikram and Danny had gone. There was nothing but dense, wooded area and wildly sloping terrain beyond the cabin but the muffled bellowing she could hear in the distance alerted Lacey to the direction in which they had gone. She carefully eased herself over the wooden banister surrounding the deck and shimmied to the ground, taking off in a dead run towards the shouting.

The ground was uneven and littered with the shriveled trunks of dead trees. More than once Lacey lost her footing but determination kept her from slowing her pursuit. She ran until she felt like her lungs would explode from the lack of air, heedless to the hanging branches that slapped across her face, arms and legs. Just as she began to fear that she would never find them among the clusters of trees and bumpy terrain, Lacey caught up with them just as Vikram was attempting to force a stumbling Danny to his feet.

She skidded to a halt when she found herself once again face to face with the barrel of Vikram's gun. Lacey raised her trembling hands in a gesture of surrender. "It's over, Mr. Desai," she whispered, "Don't make this worse for yourself or us. It's only a matter of time before the authorities find usssss."

Vikram jabbed the gun at her. "This is your fault!" he ground out, "You brought them right to my door!"

"No, Dad!" Danny protested wildly, hoping to divert Vikram's attention from Lacey entirely, "It's me. They're looking for me. I brought them to you. It's not Lacey's fault. Leave her out of it, please."

His father regarded him with a panicked stare that was reminiscent of a cornered animal. "I can't go to prison," he mumbled, "I'm as good as dead if they send me there. I'm as good as dead." Far beyond them, the echoing barks of trained police dogs could be heard. Vikram regarded Danny sadly. "Nothing has been on my terms," he lamented, suddenly shoving the gun beneath his chin in unmistakable meaning, "But this moment... _this_ can be on my terms!"

"Dad, no! Don't!" Danny threw out his hands reflexively to thwart his father's actions, wholly unprepared for the moment when Vikram hastily aimed the gun at him and pulled the trigger.

The deafening bang drowned out Lacey's horrified screams, echoing out over the treetops as Danny was thrown back from the force of the bullet tearing through his body. He fell back against frozen ground without a sound. Lacey barely had time to scramble to his side before the second shot rang out and she was sprayed with the remnants of Vikram Desai's blood and brain matter. He dropped at her feet with a ominous thump, what was left of his face and head almost unrecognizable.

In state of shock and choking on her own bile and tears, Lacey half stumbled, half crawled over to an unconscious Danny and quickly pressed both of her trembling hands over his pumping wound, begging him in her heart over and over not to die. Lacey cried out for help as his blood ran in warm spurts between her fingers. She tried to apply more pressure but it leaked from his body like a sieve. Fresh blood pooled beneath him as well. Even in her state of near incoherence, Lacey could easily recognize that wasn't good.

"Please don't do this...please don't leave me..." she wept hysterically in between screaming for help, "I can't do this again...I can't..."

Even as their rescuers made their approach, Lacey kept on screaming and screaming, overcome with pure anguish as she watched Danny's life slip out of him in inches. He was going to die right in front of her and there wasn't a thing she could do to stop it. She screamed over the impotence of it all. She screamed because she hadn't been fast enough or strong enough to protect him. She screamed until her voice started to grow hoarse and her throat began to burn.

Lacey Porter screamed until she practically had no breath left...even long after she and Danny had been transported to the hospital and Vikram Desai had been zipped into a body bag.

* * *

 **A/N: So this is going to be my last update until Sunday. Enjoy your holiday, readers. Sorry to leave it at such an awkward moment. Also, the next 3 chapters after this will be dealing with some sensitive subject matter such as depression, mental health issues, suicide and end of life decisions. Just wanted to give some forewarning to those who might be triggered by those particular things.  
**


	33. Chapter Thirty Two

**A/N: Finished with this sooner than I thought I would.**

* * *

 **Chapter Thirty** **Two**

The physician caught up with Samuel and Judy Porter just before they could duck inside Lacey's treatment room. His timing proved to be fortuitous because neither of them were prepared to see what lay beyond their daughter's hospital door. "Mr. and Mrs. Porter, my name is Dr. Vaughn." Sam and Judy impatiently shook the doctor's hand, clearly preoccupied with getting in to see Lacey. "Before you go inside, I'd like a moment to speak with you both about Lacey's condition," Vaughn warned them grimly, "She's not herself at this time. We tried to clean her up as best we could but she's very resistant to anyone touching her. There's still a lot of dried blood."

Judy stumbled to a halt, her heart suspending mid-beat at the physician's words. "What do you mean?" she demanded in a pained wheeze, "We were told on the phone that Lacey wasn't injured!"

"She wasn't," the doctor quickly reassured her, "Your daughter sustained a few minor injuries...some superficial abrasions to her wrists and ankles and a handful of scrapes and cuts to her arms and legs. Nothing life threatening at all. Physically she's doing quite well."

Samuel Porter regarded the doctor with a wary stare, his ears prickling at one word in particular. "What do you mean 'physically' she's doing well?"

"Mr. Porter, your daughter was brought into our ER hysterical and extremely combative," Vaughn explained, "She wouldn't answer any of our questions, not even to tell us her name. Whenever staff got too near to her she became violent...kicking, scratching and biting. We were forced to medicate her and place her in restraints for her safety and the safety of our staff here."

Judy Porter digested that with a short, disbelieving laugh. "Wait a minute. Are you telling me that my daughter is in there _tied to a bed_ right now?"

"As I said before, we did so for her safety and the safety of the staff," Dr. Vaughn reiterated, "The medication is starting to take effect, so she's much calmer now but she still becomes very agitated when anyone gets too close to her. Once she falls asleep, we will remove the restraints."

Sam shook his head in complete denial of the doctor's words. He exchanged an anxious glance with Judy that bordered on confusion. "Are you sure you have the right patient? That doesn't sound anything like our daughter," he said, "Lacey doesn't have a violent bone in her body. She's the most level-headed child I know."

"I don't think you're understanding what I'm trying to tell you here," the physician replied gently, "Your daughter has very likely had a psychotic break. She's not going to be herself, Mr. Porter."

"A psychotic break?" Judy balked, "You're saying this based on what? The fact she was upset when she was brought in here? People get upset! That's no reason to strap her down to a bed like she's an animal! Lacey is a child! She's just...she's been under a lot of stress lately but...but this isn't at all what you said."

"I understand that what I'm telling you isn't easy to hear, Mrs. Porter, but I assure you-,"

"-You've known my daughter for less than an hour and you're already making snap judgments about her mental state!" Judy bit out, "You're damned right it isn't easy for me to hear! Who the hell do you think you are?"

The doctor's frustration with her was plain but, he made no further attempts to reason with her after that. Instead, he said, "A social worker will be over soon to speak to you about treatment options."

Sam winced. "When you say 'treatment options' what you really mean is a psychiatric facility...isn't that right, Dr. Vaughn?"

"I think it's something you and your wife might want to consider."

"Ex-wife," Judy clarified crisply, "We are no longer married and _I_ am the only one who is authorized to make medical decisions for Lacey. I will not be placing my daughter in any psychiatric facility so you can consider that 'option' off the table! If you have a problem with that, you can remove yourself from her medical team!"

Judy and Sam were still in a fair bit of denial over Lacey's probable diagnosis, though at differing degrees, when they finally entered Lacey's treatment room. The interior seemed almost harshly bright. In the far corner a hospital employee was situated with her chair facing Lacey. She explained to them that she had been placed there as a safety sitter for Lacey and that, presently, their daughter was on a suicide watch. One look at Lacey made it clear to them why such precautions were necessary.

The girl who lay across the stretcher was clearly broken. She made small, yelping sounds from the back of her throat, almost as if she was in pain but her face, which was turned towards the wall, remained a remote mask. If she was feeling any real pain or discomfort, Lacey's expression and body language didn't show it. Other than the pitiable whimpers she was making, Lacey didn't move at all. As the physician had warned them, she was in restraints with both arms and both legs shackled to the bed in an almost spread eagle fashion. Her arms, face and fingernails were crusted with speckles of dried blood. Her dark hair framed her face is a disarrayed halo. Her eyes were open and fixed straight ahead, lifeless and dull.

Judy choked back a sob at the sight of her. "My God..."

Against her better judgment, she had yielded to Kyle Masterson's advice to remain in Green Grove while he and the local authorities worked to track down the address Karen Desai had given them. After that strange and surprising conversation with Karen and Kyle that day, Judy had been left reeling in disbelief. The idea that Vikram Desai was still alive...that Danny hadn't murdered his Aunt Tara after all...it had been too much to process at too tumultuous a time. For the most part, Judy put everything she had learned out of her mind and instead kept focused on finding her daughter. That was the most pressing thing. Vikram Desai possibly being alive and the potential effect that could have for Lacey didn't really compute for her then.

When she and Sam had first received the call that Lacey had been found in the exact location Karen Desai had said she would be there had been an overwhelming sense of relief that their nightmarish ordeal was finally over. And then the second part of that news had come and their anxiety resurged with a vengeance. They were told that Lacey was being transported to the hospital and that they needed to come to a metro area hospital in Pennsylvania right away. After securing Clara with one of the teammates' family, Sam and Judy had taken the first flight out of New York that they could find.

The limited report they'd been given stated that Lacey had been involved in a brief hostage crisis and that there had been multiple gunshot victims on scene. They had not been told who the hostages were or who the culprit had been for that matter either. All Sam and Judy had known for certain was that their little girl hadn't been among the gunshot victims. Seeing her in the state she was now, however, the knowledge did not bring them an abundance of comfort.

"Oh, sweetheart..." Judy whispered mournfully as she approached the bed, "It's okay now. Mama is here. I'll make it better. Your mama is here."

But the instant she got closer, Lacey whipped her head around with a lethargic, unfocused glower and growled at Judy much the way a feral animal would. Even while it was clear that the medication they had given her was beginning to take effect, Lacey still bucked and pulled against her restraints, as if she meant to come off the stretcher and attack. What frightened Judy the most was that she didn't see any recognition in Lacey's eyes for her at all. She shrank back with a stunned gasp.

"Honey, it's okay," she reassured Lacey calmly, "It's Mom. I'm not going to hurt you."

His expression a mixture of concern and horror, Sam placed a warning hand on Judy's forearm when she would have taken another step forward. "Don't do that. Remember what the doctor told us. We can't get too close to her."

"This is unacceptable, Samuel! I want to know what the hell they gave her," Judy bit out, "because this has to be the medication! That is not Lacey in that bed! I want to know what they gave her right now!"

"Okay, okay! Calm down! Stay here with her," he told her, "I'll find the doctor."

As soon as he was gone, Judy collapsed into the empty chair adjacent to Lacey's stretcher, watching in dismay as Lacey turned her face back towards the wall and resumed her low pitched whining. She didn't seem to acknowledge Judy's presence or the presence of anyone else for that matter. It was almost like Lacey had retreated to a place in her mind where no one could touch her. Physically, her body remained with them but mentally she was someplace else entirely.

"How long has she been doing that?" Judy asked the sitter wearily, "Making that noise and acting so withdrawn?"

"Since I got here. She's never spoken a word to me."

"Do you know what happened to her?"

The worker had just finished shaking her head when a soft knock sounded at the door. A moment later, Tess Masterson poked her tousled, strawberry blonde head through. Judy barely registered surprise over seeing her because she was so relieved to see a familiar face right then.

"Judy?" Tess called out tentatively, "Is it okay if I come inside?" Judy's answer to that was to swiftly close the distance between herself and Tess and enfold the other woman in a tight hug. Tess gripped her back just as tightly. "I'm so sorry, Judy," she whispered, "I know you must be in hell right now."

"I don't understand what's happening," Judy choked quietly, "I feel like the entire world has turned upside down and no one will tell me anything."

Under different circumstances, Judy might not have been so quick to seek comfort from Tess Masterson. It had been some years since the two women had shared any close interaction with one another. When their daughters had fallen out of touch with one another and drifted apart, so had they. However, in that vulnerable moment of shared grief, the distance between them hardly mattered. Judy was in desperate need of a support system right then and, thankfully, Tess was there to fill that need for her.

"How is she?" Tess asked anxiously when they finally parted, "Is she doing any better?"

"Sam and I only arrived a little while ago," Judy replied. She gestured towards a near catatonic Lacey before nudging Tess further out into the corridor. "This is how she was when we got here. I think she might be having a reaction to whatever the hell it was that they gave her but the doctor thinks that she had a psychotic break and needs to be committed."

"I know hearing that couldn't have been easy."

"I don't understand how any of this happened!" Judy cried yet again, "She's never had an issue like this before. Lacey has always been so happy and well-adjusted. I know that she tends to compartmentalize her emotions at times but _this_... I don't know what this is, Tess!" She lowered her voice to an infuriated hiss when she added, "They have her strapped to the bed, for goodness' sake!"

Tess compressed her lips in a grim smile of pure empathy. "Unfortunately, I've been there and done that," she said, "I know it seems cruel to you but, trust me, it's better for them."

"Is this what you had to go through with Jo?"

"It's definitely similar. I've been in your shoes a few times in fact. I know it's not easy to see your child in this state. You're probably blaming yourself and thinking of all the ways you failed her."

That intuitive summation of Judy's feelings caused tears to well in her eyes. "I have failed her," she choked out, "I've been such a neglectful mother, Tess. She's had to deal with so much on her own and now look where we are."

"You've had a hard time of it," Tess acknowledged, "With everything that happened with Sam and the divorce, I'm surprised you were able to keep it together."

"That was because of Lacey. She was never a demanding child. She was so willing to take care of herself and I let her. I let her and she's been a mess this whole time. And the worst part about it is that part of me knew that. I knew this was coming but I had no idea it would be _this_ bad."

"Judy, you can't blame yourself," Tess implored, " _Anyone_ would have broken under the stress of what happened today."

"What _did_ happen?" Judy asked, "When Kyle's deputy called us, he didn't provide very many details beyond the fact that the kids had been found."

"Well, you're aware that Vikram Desai was alive, right?" Tess began carefully.

A humorless smile ghosted the corners of Judy's lips. She scoffed at the question. "I know that was Kyle's theory. But it seemed more like fiction than fact."

"It was definitely fact. Apparently, he struck some kind of deal with the FBI and they've been protecting him this entire time. They helped him create this whole new identity for himself and everything."

Judy absorbed that news with a stunned breath. "You're joking."

"Not at all," Tess refuted with a shake of her head, "The kids found out he was alive and they went looking for him and...they found him. He was there at the cabin when they got there. He held them at gunpoint the entire night."

"What?" Judy exploded in a daze, "He did what?" She'd barely had time to process the unbelievable news that Vikram Desai was alive before she was swiftly hit with the alarming revelation that he had also taken her daughter hostage. "Has he been arrested? Are they pressing charges?"

"No, they're not pressing charges. He's dead, Judy."

Judy scowled at her in confusion. "But you just told me-,"

"-He committed suicide. He shot himself...right after he shot Danny."

Shocked into momentary silence, Judy wilted back into the nearest wall, fearful that her legs would no longer support her. "Oh dear God..." she uttered, "The deputy who called us said that there had been multiple gunshot victims at the scene. I didn't even consider..." She lifted fearful eye to Tess. "Please tell me Danny isn't..."

When she was unable to finish the sentence, Tess did so for her. "He's not dead," she reassured Judy softly, "but it's pretty bad. The bullet punctured his spleen and kidney and collapsed his lung. He's lost a lot of blood. When first responders arrived they said he was dead on the scene. They were able to get him back but he never regained consciousness. He's in surgery now."

"Oh my God..."

"Apparently, Lacey witnessed the whole thing. Jo said that she was hysterical...that she's never heard anyone scream like that before..."

Judy pressed a shaking hand to her mouth, fearful that she might actually become ill in that moment. "Where is Karen right now?"

"She and Kyle are waiting for Danny to come out of surgery. I feel so horrible for her. She actually had to go down to the morgue to identify Vikram's body."

"Where's Jo?" Judy asked in a sudden panic, "She wasn't-?"

"-No, Jo wasn't hurt," Tess rushed to reassure her, "She's got a couple of cuts and bruises but that's it. She's with Rico right now. He's being admitted for observation. He has a small skull fracture courtesy of Vikram and a little bit of bleeding in the brain. The doctors think it should resolve itself but they want to watch him overnight to make sure it doesn't worsen."

"Vikram sure made quite a mess, didn't he?" Judy muttered bitterly.

"Wasn't that his talent? That man always had two faces. You wouldn't believe half the things he's done. I'm still sick to my stomach over it all."

"But to shoot his own child..." Judy lamented in disgust, "You said that Danny was in bad shape. What do the doctors think? Does he have a good chance at recovery?"

"Karen said that they don't really expect him to survive the surgery and, if he does, he probably won't last through the night," Tess said, "The doctors told her to prepare herself...as if it's remotely possible to prepare for your child's death. Why do they say things like that? I think that's the stupidest advice ever."

Judy's anguished tears welled anew. "H...How am I supposed to tell Lacey that?" she stammered, "She'll be devastated. She loves him. She won't ever get over it if he dies, Tess."

Tess pulled her in for another hug as Judy dissolved into tears. "No, she won't get over it," she acknowledged in a hoarse whisper, "But she'll get through it...because you'll be there to help her."

A short time after Tess left to rejoin her family in the surgical ICU, Sam returned with the social worker assigned to Lacey's case in tow. After reassuring Judy that the medication Lacey had been given had nothing to do with her current condition, she asked Judy a series of questions regarding Lacey's psychological history and whether or not she had ever suffered from depression, anxiety or had ever harbored any suicidal inclinations. Judy staunchly refuted all such history, insisting that Lacey had always been a happy child, if not a bit introverted with her feelings at times. The social worker seemed to think that Lacey would benefit greatly from outpatient therapy but feared that she might not meet the criteria given her current mental state.

"It would help if you could bring her around," the social worker encouraged, "Try to get her to talk if you can. With her in this state, I can't, in good conscience, recommend her for outpatient therapy. My colleague will be here in the morning and will reassess her then."

Unfortunately, following the social worker's recommendation was easier said than done. Not only was Lacey uncommunicative but she was responsive to very little. Before long, it became a moot point because the medication she'd been given finally began to take effect and she fell asleep. Sam opted to find a comfortable spot in the emergency lounge in order to catch some sleep while Judy kept vigil over Lacey at the bedside. She took the opportunity while Lacey was sleeping to clean away some of the dried remnants of blood that stuck to her fingers, arms and face. Judy tried not to be too cognizant of the fact that it was very likely Danny's blood that was on her hands.

Sometime in the early morning hours, Judy lost the fight to keep her eyes open. She was slouched over in her chair rather uncomfortably when she was abruptly jostled awake by someone shaking her shoulder. Judy blinked open bleary eyes, surprised to find Jo standing above her. She offered Jo a faint smile, rising to pull her into a brief but tender hug.

"How is she doing?" Jo whispered, her eyes already trained on Lacey as she asked the question.

"They took her out of restraints a while ago. She's been sleeping for the last eight hours. This is the calmest she's been since I've been here." Judy nudged Jo's shoulder to reclaim her attention. "What are you doing awake? Shouldn't you be with your family?"

"I just came from the surgical ICU," she said, "It was a little depressing over there so I decided to come by and see how Lacey was holding up."

"How is Danny?"

"Hooked up to every machine you can imagine. He's got tubes and wires all over the place. There's barely any space to move around in his room," Jo said, "He's alive though...just without a spleen and one less kidney now."

"That's good...right?"

Jo's expression crumpled in an anguished grimace. "You didn't see him. He doesn't even look like himself right now. They're pumping him so full of drugs I'm not even sure Danny is in there anymore. It's just a mess." She turned a sorrowful glance towards Lacey. "She's a mess."

"Yeah..." Judy agreed in a soft, mournful tone, "She is."

"What do her doctors say?"

"They think she could meet criteria for outpatient therapy but, she has to talk first...and so far she doesn't seem so inclined."

"At least she's stopped screaming," Jo observed, "That's an improvement."

"Your mother told me it was bad."

"She was just kept yelling, 'I can't do it!' 'I can't do it!,' over and over again when they took her away in the ambulance," Jo said, "It was horrible."

"It sounds horrible," Judy uttered thickly. She fixed Jo with a fervid stare. "Tell me what happened today, Jo," she implored, "Tell me _everything_."

Jo did exactly that. She started from the very beginning with the truth about Tara Desai's murder, their discovery that Vikram might be alive and also responsible for Regina Crane's death as well their subsequent decision to go after him in order to clear Danny's name. When she was done speaking, Judy felt as if she had been run over by a truck. The revelation that her daughter had been dealing with such life-changing truths primarily on her own was heart-wrenching.

She leveled Jo with a mildly reproachful glare that was also brimming with disappointment. "Why didn't you kids come to us with this?" Judy demanded, "Didn't you know you were in over your heads? Why didn't you let us help you? Instead, you ran and you put yourselves in terrible danger."

"Would you have believed us if we had come to you?" Jo challenged, "You were all against Danny. Every single one of you. He was a murderer in your eyes and none of you could see past it."

"But you and Lacey knew the truth..."

"We didn't always know," Jo argued, "We believed the same thing you did...that Danny had killed Tara for reasons that were only known to him but, we decided to give him a chance and that was one of the best decisions we've ever made because it brought us all back together."

Judy's righteous indignation fizzled as quickly as it had flared. "I'm sorry, Jo," she mumbled, "I'm not blaming you. I'm just...I'm so sorry this happened. I'm sorry I wasn't more of a support to you. I'm sorry for all of it."

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault, Mrs. Porter. It's no one's fault...except maybe for Mr. Desai's. I know it sounds terrible but...I'm glad he's dead...I mean _really_ dead now. It just didn't happen soon enough for Danny."

"You've been through so much, Jo," Judy murmured, "Too much for someone so young." She darted a despondent glance over at her sleeping daughter. "You all have."

"I can sit with her if you need a break," Jo volunteered, "It will probably do you some good to be out of this room for a while."

"I don't want to leave her. If she wakes up in a strange place, she might panic if I'm not here."

"I'll be her familiar face. Don't worry. I'll take good care of her, Mrs. Porter." It took several tries but Jo finally convinced Judy to leave the room at least long enough to stretch her legs. Once she was gone, Jo pulled a chair up next to Lacey's stretcher, ignoring the safety sitter's warning that being too close might not be a good idea. "Don't worry," Jo reassured her, "She's not going to give me any trouble. Are you, Lace?" She wasn't at all surprised when Lacey opened her eyes at the question. Jo favored her with a wry smile. "Pretending to sleep? Really, Lacey? You're looking at the master. I perfected it."

Lacey said nothing but merely stared ahead with vacant eyes, not acknowledging Jo's presence at all. "Don't do that," Jo admonished her softly, "Don't give me the silent treatment along with everyone else. I know you're in there, Lacey Porter. I know you can hear me." Lacey's expression remained distant, inscrutable.

"Fine," Jo conceded, "Don't talk. Just listen. I know what you're thinking right now. You feel like you've reached your breaking point and you're done. But, trust me, _this_ isn't bottom. It can get so much worse and you are so much stronger than this. You can't give up. Not now. Not when you still have so much left to accomplish...your whole life ahead of you, Lacey. Don't let the darkness win. If you let yourself fall into that pit, you'll spend the rest of your life trying to climb out of it. I know that better than anyone."

She searched Lacey's features for some flicker of emotion, some betrayal of whatever was going on inside of her mind right then but her face remained a frozen mask. Jo reached over to brush Lacey's tangled hair away from her face, a little disheartened when Lacey didn't even flinch. "Don't you know if you don't start talking that they're going to put you away? You need to get better but let it be on _your_ terms, not _theirs_ , Lacey!" She swallowed past the acrid tears gathering in her throat, silently begging for some indication that Lacey was hearing her. "You can't do this to me, Lacey," she whispered brokenly, "I can't lose you both at the same time."

When she received no response to that either, Jo sighed in defeat and started to scoot her chair away from the bed. As she did so, she heard the faint call of her name. Jo snapped her head up but almost feared she'd imagined the whole thing when she saw that Lacey's expression hadn't changed at all. Still, she asked in a quivering whisper, "Lacey? What is it? Did you say something?"

"Jo?" she said again, though her eyes and countenance remained expressionless, "I need to know."

"Yeah, Lacey? What do you want to know?"

"Is Danny gonna die?" For the first time since Jo began speaking to her, she raised her eyes and looked directly at her. They were glistening with unshed tears. Her words were hoarse and nearly inaudible when she said, "Don't lie to me. Tell me the truth. Is he?"

Jo answered her with a hesitant nod. "Yeah...I think he is."

Lacey didn't have an immediate reaction to that. At first, her expression continued unchanged, a frozen mask devoid of emotion. And then it happened. A tiny whimper escaped from between her compressed lips which was then followed by another and another until she was sobbing uncontrollably, her entire body shaking with the force. She bunched her fingers in the sheets tightly as the harsh cries tore from her chest again and again. At that point, Jo succumbed to her own tears as well. She lurched forward to grab a hold of Lacey, needing to receive comfort as desperately as she needed to give it. She and Lacey clung to each other in their devastating grief, weeping together as if they were being torn apart...as if their tears would never stop.


	34. Chapter Thirty Three

**Chapter Thirty Three**

"Lacey, you need to eat something."

Despite her mother's brisk admonishment, Lacey continued to moodily push her cold fried potatoes around on her plate before finally setting aside her plastic fork. "I'm not hungry."

"Sweetie, you already skipped breakfast today. Jo told me that you haven't eaten anything since before you made it to the cabin," Judy cajoled gently, "Can't you take a few bites?"

She shook her head in refusal and pushed the platter away completely before sliding down beneath the mobile hospital tray back into her hospital bed. "I'm done," she said, "Tell the nurse I don't want anything else."

"Lacey, for God's sake," her mother pleaded, "Just one bite... _please_!"

In response to Judy's desperate pleas, Lacey merely shifted to face the wall and pulled the covers up over her head. "I'm tired, Mom," she announced dully, "I'm going to sleep now."

Judy's intention to press her further was frustrated when Sam placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. He gave a sharp shake of his head when she glared at him. "Let her be, Judy."

She shrugged off his hand. "What?" she spat, "Suddenly you're the arbiter of what's best for my child?"

"She's my daughter too," he bit out fiercely, "Let's not fight in front of her. It's not helping anything."

"She needs to eat, Sam," she hissed, "We are watching her waste away in this bed!"

"It's only been one day. Give her time."

Earlier that morning, the Mastersons had stopped by to check in with the Porter family as well as say their goodbyes. Rico Velazquez had been medically cleared with instructions to follow up with his pediatrician and was heading home with his own family that afternoon. He continued to suffer from a persistent headache but was otherwise healthy.

With his release from the hospital, the Mastersons needed to return to Green Grove as well with the understanding that Danny's condition would not be fixed so easily. Jo had been quite vocal about her reluctance to leave Lacey and Danny behind and, for a while, it looked as if Tess and Kyle would have to force her. Eventually, however, she came to realize with the help of her parents that there was little she could do for either of them other than worry herself to the point of illness. It was up to Lacey and Danny now.

While the girls said their farewells to one another, the adults made firm promises to keep each other appraised of any pertinent changes. Judy hated to see Jo go, not only because she knew how much her friendship meant to Lacey but also because Jo Masterson seemed to be the only one who could coax Lacey out of her withdrawn moods. With the Mastersons' departure an unavoidable gloom settled on the Porter family. They took with them Lacey's last remaining vestiges of motivation. There was little else Sam and Judy could do other than wait for further news on Danny's condition and hope fervently that Lacey would start to improve.

On a positive note, Danny had, to the surprise of his doctors and nurses, survived the night. In spite of that feat, his prognosis remained as grim as ever. The doctors attributed his fortitude mainly to his youth but seemed to be in agreement that he was on a slow decline. Judy had hoped that news that he wasn't dead yet would be enough to encourage Lacey's continued progress. She was already talking again. The only thing that remained was waiting for her to give some indication that she wanted help.

That wasn't to be the case, however. Even though she had seemingly recovered from her brief departure from sanity Lacey remained as withdrawn as ever. She interacted very little with her surroundings, thoroughly uninterested in everything. It was unclear to Judy whether her behavior was due to the fact Danny remained in critical condition or because she had simply lost her will to go on in the aftermath of everything that had transpired in the past week.

Judy couldn't help but be concerned by Lacey's lack of initiative. With her latest refusal to eat or drink anything, her chances for receiving an outpatient referral would likely become a dim prospect. While she was now responding to questions appropriately and was no longer combative with her parents and staff, her actions and reactions were devoid of any real emotion. She was like an automaton, doing and saying all the right things but with perfunctory efficiency. Judy was extremely aware and, most regrettably so was the hospital staff, that Lacey was going through the motions. It mattered little that she was speaking again. Lacey was as emotionally broken as ever.

The one thing Lacey had shown a modicum of passion about, the thing she had requested again and again, was to see Danny. She asked about him frequently. She wanted to be at his side. She wanted to hold his hand. And she voiced a request to do so almost every hour on the hour.

That, of course, was better than nothing but, Judy was leery about granting her permission. Danny was a wreck. Judy imagined that seeing him could only worsen Lacey's depression. Sam, as usual, disagreed with her, and asserted that Lacey might actually benefit from seeing Danny. Judy had been quick to dismiss his suggestion. From her perspective, it was easy for him to suggest such a thing when he hadn't yet been over to the surgical ICU to see Danny with his own eyes. He was too much of a coward to face Karen Desai after the way he had disparaged her son. The same was not true for Judy. She had been compelled to offer her condolences to Karen and the gravity of Danny's condition had left her shaken. It was a surety that Lacey would be devastated.

It was during one of the altogether few instances when she had allowed herself to be away from Lacey's bedside that Judy ventured over to the surgical ICU. Tess had warned that Karen was in a bad way and that had been no exaggeration. She looked as if she had aged ten years in just ten hours. Her pretty, Barbie doll-like features had been pale and haggard and filled with defeat and despair. It had broken Judy's heart just _looking_ at her, let alone listening to the grief in her voice as they spoke about Danny's prognosis. However, none of the warnings she had received from Tess or Jo could have prepared Judy for the reality of Danny lying in his hospital bed.

He was almost unrecognizable behind all the wires and tubes entering and exiting his body, nothing like the cocky, defiant sixteen year old boy was expecting. He looked grey and frail and broken in his hospital bed. He had a tube down his throat, pillows propped beneath his four extremities and a steady drip of various medications feeding through his veins. There had been a plethora of machines beeping and whooshing and alarming for the duration of her short visit. His nurses had been in and out of his room in a constant processional to adjust drip doses, assess his cardiac rhythm and validate his vital signs.

Judy couldn't leave the ICU fast enough. She hadn't needed a medical doctor to confirm for her that Danny was critically ill. She could plainly see that with her own eyes, just as she could plainly discern that it was unlikely he would last much longer in his current condition. It was the last thing Lacey needed to see. She didn't need that to be her last memory of him, especially now when she was in such an emotionally fragile state. Judy was certain the reality would push her over the precarious edge on which she was already teetering.

Unfortunately, the more she refused Lacey's request, the more despondent her daughter seemed to become. She didn't rail at Judy defiantly as she would have in the past but instead seemed to shrink more and more inside of herself, becoming less and less like the Lacey she'd once been. As crazy as Lacey's sassiness often drove her, Judy would have welcomed it. She half hoped that Lacey would fight her, if for no other reason than to prove there was still some fight in her.

She sat there lamenting that fact when the social worker, a woman who had introduced herself to them earlier that morning as Clem Watkins, knocked softly on the door. Judy and Sam rose dutifully when she gestured for them to join her outside of Lacey's treatment room. "How did she do with lunch?" Ms. Watkins asked without preface, "Did she manage to eat something?"

"I think she's still a little sleepy from the medicine they gave her last night," Judy replied with a falsely casual air, "She's too tired to eat right now."

Ms. Watkins expelled a disappointed sigh. "I'm not sure how comfortable I feel sending Lacey home with outpatient referrals at this point," she said, "If she's refusing to eat and drink, that's a problem."

"She's not refusing," Judy denied hotly, "She's fatigued! She's been through an emotional ordeal and she's drained! We'll try again at dinner."

The social worker looked to Sam. "Mr. Porter, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this."

Judy spoke up before he could answer. "What _he_ thinks doesn't matter! He doesn't factor into this," she interrupted coldly, " _I_ am Lacey's full time parent."

"And a lot of good that's done her," Sam scoffed bitterly.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"What do you think it means, Judy?" Sam retorted, "Our daughter had a nervous breakdown under _your_ watch! I wouldn't necessarily call that stellar parenting!"

"You son of a bitch! At least I've actually _been_ a parent to her! Can you say the same?"

The social worker stepped between them before the argument could degenerate into further insults. "Neither of you are helping Lacey by fighting," she advised them, "We need to be focused on finding a solution that benefits her in the best possible way."

Sam slowly relaxed his defensive stance, his belligerent glower falling away from Judy at last. "Lacey wants to see her boyfriend," he informed Ms. Watkins flatly, "She's been asking to see him since she woke up this morning."

"And that's a terrible idea, isn't it?" Judy inserted quickly, "Lacey can't handle seeing Danny in the state she's in right now. She could very well have a setback!"

"Normally, I would agree with you, Mrs. Porter," the social worker said, "But this is a very special circumstance. My understanding is that the young man's condition is very grave. If he were to die without Lacey being given an opportunity to tell him goodbye that could impede her recovery. It might even hinder her progress altogether."

It took several more hours to convince Judy to agree but, eventually, the constant pressure from Ms. Watkins and Sam as well as Lacey's unrelenting requests finally wore her down. She procured a wheelchair for Lacey and, after it was arranged for the safety sitter to travel with them, she reluctantly wheeled Lacey down to the surgical ICU. "Now I want you to be prepared," she whispered to Lacey in warning along the way, "He doesn't really look like himself."

"I know," Lacey replied in a flat tone, "Jo told me it was bad."

The instant they entered the surgical waiting room and Karen Desai caught sight of Lacey she dissolved into tears. She clutched the traumatized girl in a tearful embrace, too distraught to realize that Lacey barely returned her hug or had much reaction at all. Karen rocked back on her heels and framed Lacey's face in her hands. "Oh sweetheart," she wept, "are you sure you want to do this?"

Lacey jerked her head in a small nod. "I want to see him," she insisted softly, "Will you take me in to him please?"

"They're restricting visitors so you'll be in there by yourself," Karen explained.

"That's fine. I need time alone with him anyway."

They wanted to wheel her to his room and have the sitter accompany her but Lacey steadfastly refused both. She wanted to get there under her own steam and she wanted privacy when she did. Though it was against hospital policy, the sitter conceded to her insistence but gave her a timetable for her visit. Lacey accepted her conditions with a demure nod and then dutifully followed the instructions Karen gave her for finding Danny's room.

She faltered a step just outside his treatment door, catching sight of him through the large pane of glass that served as the entrance. Jo had not been exaggerating when she said he was unrecognizable. He appeared slightly bloated, his eyes, face and arms swollen with retained fluid. His breathing was steady but mechanical, aided by the ventilator that filtered air into his lungs through the tube hanging at the corner of his mouth. It was difficult to see him that way but Lacey knew from Jo's warnings that what she could see was only a small portion of the actual reality.

Lacey sucked in a fortifying breath and stepped through the door on trembling legs, slowly approaching his bedside. Once inside, she was bombarded with the incessant beeping and whooshing of the machinery that surrounded him. She was overwhelmed by the sight of the chest tube collection system that drained blood and fluid from his pleural cavity, the bag connected to the urinary catheter which drained his urine and green colored bile that was suctioned from his gut via the thin, flexible tube that had been fed down his throat into his stomach. It was a lot to take in and that was completely discounting his cardiac monitor and the multiple IV lines that meandered out from his body. There was so much that Lacey was almost afraid to touch him.

For several, breathless seconds her hand hovered in mid-air above his before she finally grasped hold of his fingers and squeezed them tight. "I'm here," she whispered, "I'm sorry it took me so long. Judy and Sam were being stubborn." Lacey paused a moment, as if she expected him to make response to that. When he didn't, she said, "I think they're going to put me in the nut house and I would panic about that but...I don't feel too much of anything right now.

"I'm not sad or scared or even angry. I'm just numb," she continued in a monotone whisper, "I hope you're numb too. I hope you're not in pain. I hope you're at peace." She leaned down to press a gentle kiss near his ear. "I love you. It's okay if you have to go, Danny," she told him, "I understand. You shouldn't worry about me. I'll be there with you soon."

Later, when they had returned to Lacey's treatment room, Judy was heartened when Lacey declared that she was hungry after all. With the return of her appetite, it was her parents hope as well as that of hospital staff that Lacey might be on an upward swing. After the social worker provided Judy with referrals for outpatient therapy in their area, Lacey was discharged from the hospital. Lacey was understandably distraught at the idea of leaving Danny behind but did not put up an argument when her parents insisted that she come home with them. Lacey sat on the plane and stared out the window as they left Pennsylvania behind, thinking that it didn't matter too much that she wasn't there physically with Danny. The parts of her that really mattered had been left behind with him.

Upon her return to Green Grove, Lacey proved to be a model daughter. She attended therapy when her parents said so. She ate when her parents said so. She slept when they said so. Lacey didn't even protest at her father's sudden reintroduction back into her life, didn't complain at all when Sam Porter saw fit to weigh in on decisions that personally affected her. None of it mattered anyway. She was merely existed from day to day, waiting to Karen Desai's daily reports on Danny's steady deterioration and biding her time until the moment came for him to take his final breath.

Not even her subsequent return to school seemed like much of an ordeal. She was aware of the whispered gossip that took place behind her back but it didn't much faze her. Lacey stuck close to Jo and Rico during that time, paying very little attention to her peers or the rumors that circulated about them. But while Lacey seemed mostly unconcerned with the attention she was receiving, Jo and Rico were both hyperaware of the scrutiny. They sat together during lunch period, acutely aware of the furtive looks being darted at them from all directions.

Rico took a bite of his sandwich, trying not to look as self-conscious as he felt. "Now I know how poor Gilbert feels," he mumbled around a mouthful.

Lacey squinted at him in question. "Gilbert? Who's Gilbert?"

"It's his beta fish," Jo clarified, "He loves that thing to an unhealthy degree. But I agree...this does feel a lot like being in a fishbowl."

"Just ignore them," Lacey advised with a shrug, "They'll find a new topic of conversation by next week. Trust me." She watched Rico and Jo mount a rather unsuccessful effort to feign nonchalance with their classmates' unabashed staring before she decided to change the subject entirely. "Rico, how's your head?"

"I still have a little bit of a headache," he said, "But my doctor said the bleeding is mostly resolved. I'm more concerned about this big ass bruise on the side of my face." He fingered the tender, purple and black bruise that covered a good portion of the lateral side of his face. "It just invites questions. Everyone keeps asking me if the rumors are true."

"What are they asking?" Lacey asked in a half interested tone.

"They want to know if Vikram Desai really was alive and if he actually tried to kill us."

Jo released a self-deprecating grunt. "Isn't this stuff supposed to be confidential?" she wondered aloud, "How did it become common knowledge for everyone?"

"My parents said that we've been a running news story since we left," Rico said, "Reporters have been following this since the beginning. I suppose it was inevitable that something would leak." He was stalled by saying anything further by Sarita Henson's unexpected approach. "Uh oh...we have trouble," he coughed slyly into his hand, "Incoming!"

Lacey had just a split second to prepare mentally before Sarita reached them. She tipped back her head to regard the other girl with a wary, waiting stare. "What do you want, Sarita?" she demanded wearily.

"To say 'hi,'" Sarita replied somewhat awkwardly, "And to see how you were holding up with everything." Lacey said nothing to that but continued to survey her with inscrutable eyes. Sarita tried again. "I heard about Danny. I'm sorry, Lacey."

"And what did you hear?"

"That he was shot," Sarita said, "That he really didn't kill his aunt after all. That he didn't kill Regina either."

"Which is what I've been saying for weeks," Lacey pointed out, "It suddenly matters to you now?"

"Can you really blame me for thinking the worst of him, Lacey? He let everyone believe he was a killer. I didn't know him like you did!"

"And you never will," Lacey informed her harshly, "He's going to die, Sarita, so this entire conversation is pretty pointless."

Jo recoiled at her blunt phrasing. "Lacey! What are you doing?"

"Well, it's true, isn't it?" she insisted quietly, "He is. Danny is going to die. His father shot him at close range like he was nothing. Everyone is already gossiping about what happened anyway. Now they have confirmation. Danny Desai was shot by his not so dead father and now he's going to die." She fixed Sarita with an impassive stare. "Are you happy? Did you get what you came for, Sarita?" Intensely aware of the horrified looks she was receiving from both Jo and Rico, Lacey pushed back her chair and exited the cafeteria without a backwards glance.

She avoided Jo and Rico for the remainder of the school, ducking out the back doors soon after the final bell rang. As had become her routine for the past week since she'd returned home, Lacey attended her daily session with her personal therapist. She spent close to an hour humoring the woman with a discussion on her feelings concerning her parents' divorce and her father's sudden presence in her life again. By the time it was over and she had returned home, Lacey was physically and mentally exhausted. After obligatory greetings to her parents and sister, she trudged up the stairs to her bedroom and locked the door.

On her computer desk sat the newly purchased bottles of antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications that she had been prescribed upon her discharge from the hospital. She stared at the bottles, wondering vaguely just how many pills she would have to take before she stopped breathing. She was still contemplating the answer to that question when Jo abruptly ducked through her bedroom window. Lacey jumped, startled by her unannounced arrival.

"I have a front door, you know," she informed Jo irritably, "You should try using it."

"I couldn't take the chance your mom would turn me away," Jo replied.

Lacey sat down on her bed with a heavy sigh. "She's just being overprotective because of everything that's happened. She's worried about me."

"I'm worried about you too," Jo said, "You're not yourself, Lacey."

The corner of her mouth quirked in a mirthless smile. "Oh yeah? Then who am I, Jo?"

Knowing better than to get drawn into a circular argument with her, Jo addressed the situation which had brought her to Lacey's window in the first place. "I recognize the signs, you know?" she prompted her softly, "You don't think I know what you're doing, Lacey?"

She tipped back her head with a tired sigh. "What am I doing?"

"Yesterday you gave me the charm bracelet that Danny made for you when we were in fifth grade and the day before that you went on and on about what a great couple Rico and I were and how you hoped we'd be together for a long time."

Lacey shrugged. "So what? You guys are beautiful together. I'm glad to see you happy. You deserve that. And as for the bracelet, well...you always loved it. I remember how jealous you were because Danny didn't make you one too."

"That's because _you_ were special to him."

"So are you...just in a different way. He'd want you to have it."

"You love that bracelet too, Lacey. I know what it means to you. It was the last thing Danny gave you before he went away."

"I wanted you to have it," Lacey told her softly, "You're my best friend. I wanted you to have something that was important to me...something that was important to him."

"Why?"

"Because I love you," Lacey replied as if that should be answer enough, "Why not?"

Jo swallowed painfully, her eyes brimming with tears when she asked, "Are you thinking about it?"

"Thinking about what?"

"You know what!" Jo cried, "Are you?" Lacey nibbled her lip and averted her eyes, her drawn features flickering with guilt. For Jo that was confirmation enough. She emitted a distressed moan and had to fairly force herself to ask the next question. "Do you have a plan?"

An agonizing beat of silence followed the question before Lacey finally replied, "Yes, I have a plan. I'm waiting for Danny though. I won't do anything without him."

Jo doubled over, feeling an almost physical pain with Lacey's admission. "Oh my god..."

"I've thought about what I need to do," Lacey went on as if she were planning something as mundane as a trip to the grocery store, "I'll be responsible about it. I won't let Clara be the one to find me. I couldn't scar her that way. My mom will handle it better."

It was debilitating for Jo to learn just how meticulously she had planned the details. Her own spiral had been born out of impulse, a desperate cry for help. But Lacey was calm and resolved. She had plotted out her actions so scrupulously that she even knew the person who would ultimately discover her body. Jo might have been impressed by her attention to detail if it all weren't so morbid and depressing. She shouldn't have been surprised, however. Lacey had rarely done anything in her life without a plan.

"Do you actually hear yourself, Lacey?" she cried softly, "Don't you get that you'll scar Clara regardless? She will never get over it! _Never!_ Do you get that?"

"I'm not going to be any good to her!" Lacey flared back, "I can't be the sister she needs! Not anymore!"

"I could tell your mom what you're planning," Jo threatened in a dire tone, "There's nothing to stop me from going downstairs this minute and telling her everything you just told me!"

"It doesn't matter if you do or not," Lacey replied in an obstinate tone, "I'll just swallow an entire bottle of pills or throw myself out the window or off of a building or I'll walk out into the middle of traffic! I'm going to do it! I'll find a way, Jo!"

Jo dropped down beside her with a crushed sigh. "Lacey," she lamented brokenly, "why didn't you talk to me? Why didn't you tell me you were feeling this way? I would have helped you."

"Talking won't change anything. Every time I close my eyes, I'm back at that day and I see Danny getting shot over and over again and there's nothing I can do to prevent it. I can't make it stop. It's on a loop in my head. I just want it to stop."

"This is your grief and trauma talking," Jo told her fiercely, "You have to work with your therapist. You have to give the medicine time to take effect."

"Is the medicine going to help me deal after Danny is gone? Is it going to help me cope with that?" Lacey challenged, "I don't think so."

"Suicide isn't the answer."

"You didn't seem to think so when you tried it."

Jo winced at the reminder. "And I was wrong!" she cried, "I've never been more wrong about anything in my entire life! When I did what I did it was because I thought things would _never_ get better. I couldn't see beyond the pain. I thought I would always feel empty and alone and I wanted to stop hurting all of the time. But I think about it now and I know all the things I would have missed if my dad hadn't found me that day.

"I would have missed out on meeting Rico and the incredible friendship we built. I wouldn't have connected with you and Danny again. I would have missed out on my second kiss and falling in love. I would have missed out on three more years with my parents, who are pretty awesome people. I would have missed out on _life_ , Lacey! I know it seems dark to you right now and I know it feels like it will never get better but, it will. It _does_. But you can't get to the other side if you give up."

Lacey broke down into tears then, a week's worth of emotion spilling out of her without warning. "I'm tired, Jo," she wept raggedly, "I'm so, so tired. This is just one more thing in a long line of horrible things and I can't deal with it anymore!"

Jo gathered Lacey against her, stroking her heaving back in soothing circles. "I know," she commiserated, "I know you're tired but we're going to find another way, okay? We're going to find a different solution, Lacey, because _that_ isn't an option at all."

"How is it supposed to be okay without him?"

"It won't be okay," Jo told her, "It's going to suck and it's going to be hard and you're never going to get over it."

Lacey drew back with a teary sniffle. "This is _not_ convincing me, Jo."

"The point is that it should be hard. You love him. So do I. There's always going to be this empty space in our lives where he should have been. But he lives on in _us_ , Lacey, through _our_ memories of him. Besides his mother, no one knows Danny like we do, like _you_ do. If you stop fighting then Danny really does die...and in a much more permanent way."

"I feel like you're asking me to do the impossible right now."

"That's because you can't do it on your own," Jo told her, "You need your family and friends to support you." She fell silent a minute, giving Lacey time to let those words sink into her head and heart before she said, "I have to tell your mom about this...about your thoughts and your plans. You know that, right, Lace?"

"I don't want you to do that. She'll be all over me. She'll put me away in a hospital, Jo!"

"I think maybe you need that."

Lacey surged to her feet with a strident protest. "No! We've talked about it! I'm better. I promise I won't try anything!"

"I don't believe you," Jo replied thickly, "I don't want to come in here one day and find you hanging from your bedroom ceiling, Lacey! I think I can take a lot but not that." Lacey set her jaw in response, tears of frustration and futility streaming down her cheeks. "Now it would be easier if you came down with me and explained what you've been feeling but...regardless of your choice, I'm going downstairs and telling your mom everything. I'm sorry if that makes you angry but I'd rather have you hate me than have you dead."

After Judy Porter got over her initial surprise that Jo was even in the house at all, she ran the gambit of emotions from shock to dismay to paralyzing fear as her eldest daughter sat down with her and quietly confessed how she had methodically planned out her own suicide. When she was done speaking, Judy felt like she wanted to throw up. "I thought you were going to your therapy sessions," she accused Lacey brokenly, "I thought you were taking your meds!"

"I have been!" Lacey cried.

"It's not an automatic cure all, Mrs. Porter," Jo interjected, "The medications take several months to build up levels in your bloodstream. Therapy is only as good as the therapist. I know a great one. He's helped me out more than you know."

"I...I think it would be a good idea for you to go into the hospital, Lacey," her mother stammered, essentially bringing Lacey's worst fears to fruition, "Maybe that's what we should have done in the first place. Maybe that would have been better for you."

"No, Mom! I don't want to go into a mental facility. I don't need that. I just...I need time. I need help. I need _you_. Please don't send me away."

"I don't know if I can give you the help you need, baby. The things you just told me...that scares the hell out of me."

Lacey started to reassure Judy that she didn't have to be scared but, at the precise moment she opened her mouth, her cell phone vibrated in the pocket of her jeans. She pulled it free despite her mother's impatient reprimand that it wasn't the time to take a phone call. Lacey took one look at the caller screen and held up her hand for quiet. "It's Mrs. Desai," she said, "Give me a second." She answered the call and said with some measure of dread, "Hi. Do you have some news?"

"Honey, is Jo there with you?" Karen asked hoarsely.

The query instantly caused Lacey's heart to contract with alarm. She reached out to blindly grope for Jo's hand. "She's right next to me. What is it?"

"Is it possible for you both to arrange coming back here...I mean as soon as possible...tonight, if you can?"

"I can ask my parents but I know something can be arranged," Lacey told her, ignoring the anxious looks Jo kept throwing her, "Why? Has something happened with Danny?"

"He's not improving. The doctors here seem to think we're prolonging the inevitable so... I've made the decision to take him off of the breathing machine. We're going to make him comfortable and we're going to let nature take its course. I thought that you and Jo would want to be here when it happened."

"Yes...yes..." Lacey replied woodenly though, at that very moment, she had no idea what she was saying. She had resigned herself to the inevitable probability that Danny would die but she had always imagined that he would slip away in his sleep. She had never anticipated that it would involve removing him from the ventilator and watching him struggle to take his last breaths. She wanted to ask a million questions. She wanted to challenge the decision altogether but in the end she promised, "We'll be there tonight. We'll find a way and we'll be there tonight."

"What is it?" Jo demanded frantically when Lacey ended the call, "What did she say?"

Lacey turned to regard her mother with dull eyes. "You can put me in the hospital," she said gruffly, "I don't care. Do what you want. But it's going to have to wait until after tomorrow. Mrs. Desai has decided to take Danny off of life support."


	35. Chapter Thirty Four

**Chapter Thirty Four**

Karen Desai jerked to startled attention when Kyle Masterson entered the cramped space that served as her son's hospital room. "You got here fast," she remarked in an unemotional tone, "I'm surprised the nurses let you back here. They're very strict with their visitation policy."

"All I had to do was flash my badge and tell them that it was official police business."

She craned a look over his shoulder. "Where are the girls?"

"I was already here in the hospital when they received your call," Kyle explained, "Tess and Judy are bringing them tonight."

"Good. Good. I'm glad they will be here." She favored her unconscious son with a bittersweet smile. "He'd want that. I think maybe he's been waiting for them this entire time."

"Is this really the only option?" Kyle wondered.

Karen had been asking herself the same question for days now. In the very beginning, she had maintained her hope that Danny would recover despite the depressing diagnosis he'd been handed by his doctors. He was young and strong and he still had so much left to accomplish. She couldn't allow herself to believe that his life, which had already been fraught with so much turmoil and injustice, could end at the tender age of sixteen. Gradually, however, as one day began to bleed into another, Karen's hope began to dwindle and dwindle until it was finally obliterated altogether and replaced with despair.

For an entire week, she had watched the doctors and nurses push medication after medication to help Danny maintain his body's most basic functions. At first, he had needed something to rid his body of excess fluid, then later he was medicated with a drug to strengthen the contractions of his heart which then prompted the need for steroids to relax his lungs in order to aid in the oxygenation of his body. Finally, when they began giving him medicine to increase and maintain his blood pressure, Karen could no longer shield herself in denial.

Even without any medical expertise, she could discern that they were nearing the end of a very painful journey. Danny's body was beginning to shut down and his medical team was only prolonging the inevitable. She had come to the conclusion long before the doctors approached her with the idea of "comfort care" that her only child was going to be lost to her. Karen had been struggling to make her peace with that knowledge ever since.

Presently, however, she shrugged lightly in response to Kyle Masterson's question. "We've exhausted all of our options," she recounted in a dull tone, "He's not making any improvements. He's not responding favorably to the meds. He's not waking up. His doctors said that I have the option of placing a tracheostomy because they expect he might be on the ventilator long-term but... I know my son. His freedom means a great deal to him. He wouldn't want to spend what time he has left confined to a bed and hooked to a machine." Her voice broke on the last of that, her words becoming garbled with unshed tears.

"I'm so sorry this is happening to you, Karen."

"I am too. I wish I didn't have to make this decision at all."

The truth of it was, Karen Desai simply wasn't ready to let go. In spite of her claim of knowing her son well, Karen was also painfully aware of the parts of Danny that had remained secret from her. Only days before, Jo had confirmed for her what had only proven to be a vague theory before...Danny hadn't killed his Aunt Tara. It had all been Vikram's doing. It filled her with anguish to think of how vulnerable and alone Danny must have felt, how trusting he must have been of Vikram to agree to and cooperate with such a horrible lie. Vikram's betrayal must have scarred him deeply. It was little wonder that Danny had struggled so tremendously with trusting people, most especially her.

But Karen couldn't lay the blame completely at Vikram's feet. She had done more than enough damage to Danny by being a neglectful and thoughtless mother. She had failed to protect him from those who meant to do him harm and for that reason he suffered in prison for five years...for that reason he lay dying on a hospital stretcher in a remote hospital far from his home and his friends. Karen would never allow herself to forget that she had done her part to set those events in motion and, as long as she lived, she would never absolve herself of the guilt either. Danny's blood would always be on her hands and she would carry that to _her_ grave.

Kyle surveyed her with a helpless stare, watching as a swirling mixture of guilt, anger and grief flickered across Karen's pale features. He couldn't read her thoughts but he had a pretty good idea what was going through her mind right then. Kyle had never seen her look so lost before, not when Danny was taken away five years ago and not when Vikram left her either. He knew that was because he was looking at a woman who truly believed she had lost everything worthwhile.

She stared down at her son with a vacant expression, her eyes darting across his still features constantly as if she were memorizing the lines of his face. Her quiet grief only served to make Kyle all the more aware of the hushed, mechanical hiss of Danny's ventilator and the rhythmic beeping of his heart monitor. It was a dismal reminder that his own child could have very well been the one lying in that bed right then. The thought chilled him. Consequently, Kyle was compelled, almost to the point of anxiety, to fill the silence with something else.

"I heard the Bureau is willing to make restitution to you. That's something, at least."

"Yes," she confirmed with a embittered turn of her lips, "They've offered me quite a bit of money in exchange for my silence though they've been clever enough to label it as compensation for my tragedy. On the bright side, it will be more than enough to cover Danny's funeral expenses so that shouldn't be an issue."

The unreserved acrimony in her words provoked a pained wince from Kyle. "Oh, Karen..."

"Why did you come here today, Kyle?" she demanded in a stoic tone, "You didn't come with the girls so what do you want?"

Kyle spread out his arms before him in a helpless gesture. "I don't know, Karen...to make up for the past, to make this better for you somehow..."

"Unfortunately, you can't do either one and I'm not interested in soothing your guilty conscience."

"That's not what I'm after. I just feel like we should all band together at a time like this," he insisted, "We're all grieving and we need each other's support to make it through this tragedy."

"No, Kyle. _I'm_ the one who is grieving. It's _my_ tragedy. _My_ child is the one who's dying right now," Karen sneered, "You get to watch yours grow up to have a future and maybe start a family some day. I get to put mine in the ground. What we're feeling isn't remotely the same!"

His winced with every single word she spat, feeling pummeled by her grief with each utterance. "I know there is very little that I can say to you that you would find comforting, Karen," he acknowledged in a gruff voice, "In fact, anything I say will probably sound incredibly trite given how stubbornly I've pursued Danny in these last few months but... You shouldn't be alone. This is too much to bear on your own."

"What choice do I have? I _am_ alone. Danny is..." she paused with a hitching breath, amending gruffly, "... _was_ all I had left."

"That's not true," Kyle refuted, "You have Jo and Lacey. Those girls love you very much and they love Danny. I can't speak for Judy but Tess and I want you to be in Jo's life. You're going to need each other in the coming months."

He waited with baited breath, half expecting her to reject him but she nodded towards an empty seat instead. "You can sit with me if you want."

They didn't share much in the way of conversation after that. It was mostly compulsory, stilted small talk. Yet, in spite of the awkwardness, Karen did receive a tiny measure of comfort from Kyle's presence. It was enough for her not to feel so alone as she contemplated one of the worst decisions of her life. She had someone to shoulder her grief, even if that particular someone had caused her son more headaches than happiness in the past.

"What do you think you'll do...afterwards?" Kyle asked. He hesitated to say "after Danny was gone" but they both knew that was what he meant.

"I don't know," Karen replied with a mirthless grunt of laughter, "Maybe I'll travel around the world or find a hobby. I guess I should probably get a job and make myself useful somehow. Who knows? Maybe I'll just adopt ten cats and become that weird, reclusive lady who lives down the street."

"You're too young and energetic to withdraw from life that way. You still have a lot to offer."

"I don't need your pity flattery. Let's be real, Kyle," she scoffed, "We both know that you always thought I was nothing more than a vapid drunk. I know you looked down your nose at me."

"That's not true."

"It's true," she refuted without acrimony, "You thought I was a mess and you were right. I _was_ vapid. I _was_ a drunk. And, most of all, I was a coward. I was trapped in an emotionally abusive marriage with a man who made it clear to me that if I left him there was no way I'd ever see my son again and I never stood up to him. I never even tried to take Danny and run. Instead, I drank myself into incoherence." She peered at Kyle thoughtfully. "Do you have any idea how it feels to love and resent your child at the same time?"

"Karen, don't do this to yourself."

"I blamed Danny because I was stuck with a man I hated. I blamed him because he was always going to tie me to Vikram and I neglected him because of it and look what happened. That's why I'm losing my child...because I never deserved him in the first place. I'm being punished."

"I don't believe that. Your grief is skewing your judgment."

"Spare me your platitudes, please," Karen choked, "I'm done lying to myself, Kyle. The Desai family has always been really masterful at deception. Lies are our specialty, especially when it comes to ourselves. But now I'm sitting here thinking about all those wasted years with Danny...years I stupidly thought I'd have time to make up for after he came home. Silly me, huh? And he and I were just finally starting to get to this good place..."

"I wish I could do something to fix this for you, Karen."

"And I wish you had fought for him when it mattered!" she flared back angrily.

Kyle made no effort to defend himself against her accusation. "So do I."

Karen bit back an aggrieved moan. "I don't suppose there's any point in assigning blame," she sighed, her fury quickly replaced with hopelessness, "There's plenty of it to go around, especially for myself. In the end, it won't change anything. It won't help Danny and it won't make this decision I have to make any easier."

"You have every right to hate me, Karen. I don't blame you."

"I don't have room inside of me for hate," she told him, "I'm too tired, Kyle and I'm too scared because I don't know what's going to happen after he's gone...not to me and not to the girls. I know that Jo will be okay eventually. She has a good support system with you and Tess. You'll see her through it. But Lacey doesn't have that. In a lot of ways, she and Danny have been _everything_ to each other. Part of me is terrified that when he goes, he'll take us both with him, one way or another."

"Lacey is a strong, resilient girl," Kyle said, "It will be hard but, she'll get through it. You _both_ will get through it because you'll support each other. You can't give up and you can't let her give up."

"That's like expecting one drowning person to save another."

"And that's what my family is here for, Karen...we won't let either of you drown."

She had just finished nodding her acknowledgment of that when the chief physician on Danny's case, Dr. Rettmann, wrapped lightly on the glass pane of Danny's door. "Mrs. Desai?" Karen glanced up just as he slipped into the room. "Is now a good time for us to talk?"

Her most immediate reaction was to refuse him. After all, Karen wasn't naive. She knew very well what he wanted to discuss with her. However, she also knew that avoiding him would not render the discussion moot either. Running from it would only prolong the inevitable. With that in mind, Karen's inhaled a painful, shuddering breath and nodded her consent. "Sure. It's a good time. I'm ready."

Dr. Rettmann directed a wary glance over at Kyle, who fidgeted anxiously in the furthest corner of the room. "May I speak freely?" he asked with a meaningful glance directed towards the police chief.

"Go right ahead," she invited softly, surprising both herself and Kyle when she added, "Kyle is...a friend. I don't mind him hearing what you have to say."

The physician nodded and cleared his throat. "I thought we might discuss the details of removing Danny from the ventilator. I wanted to allay any fears you might have about the procedure."

"I'm listening," Karen managed around the growing lump of emotion in her throat, "Walk me through it, please?"

"Let me first reassure you that he won't feel any pain, Mrs. Desai," Dr. Rettmann said, "We'll medicate him accordingly and make him as comfortable as possible. You shouldn't worry that he'll be struggling to breathe or be in any sort of distress. It won't be like that at all. His passing will be very peaceful. I encourage you to hold his hand and talk to him during the process. Hearing is usually the last thing to go and I'm sure he will be comforted to hear your voice."

"How...how long will it take?"

"That's difficult to determine," the physician sighed, "Danny is a young man with a relatively young and strong heart. It could be a matter of hours once we remove him from the ventilator or it could be a matter of days. There's no way to know. However, you and I have already discussed the fact that Danny's remaining kidney and lungs are in the process of failing. So, I don't anticipate he will linger for too long after he is extubated."

Karen fisted her hands, digging her nails deep into her palms, strangely comforted by the biting pain doing so caused her. "So what will you do exactly when the time comes?"

"We'll remove the tube and all of the monitors and IVs and lines. He won't be connected to any machinery. You can hold him if you want. It will be like he's falling asleep."

 _Only to never wake up_ , Karen added in her heart grimly. She processed the physician's gentle reassurance with a painful swallow, miraculously maintaining her stoic facade even while she was screaming inside. "I'm still waiting for his girlfriend and best friend to arrive," she explained, "I don't want to do anything until they get here and have had their chance to say goodbye to him. That's very important to me."

"Of course," Dr. Rettmann demurred, "Take as much time as you need."

She held herself together just long enough for the doctor to exit the room. After that, Karen covered her face with her hands and dissolved into hysterical tears. "I don't know if I can do this," she wept, "I don't know...I don't know..."

Kyle stepped forward to draw her into an awkward embrace, thoroughly unprepared for Karen to turn in his arms and sob uncontrollably into his chest. He patted her shoulder helplessly, acutely aware that there was little he could do for her to ease her pain. It seemed like eons of time passed before her sorrow was finally expended and she shrugged out from Kyle's loosened hold to compose herself.

"Damn Vikram," she choked hoarsely, "Damn him for all of this. If he weren't dead already, I would kill him myself!"

"You've had a lot to process in a very short period of time," Kyle acknowledged, "You need a break. You need to get out of this room. When was the last time you had a decent night's rest or a real meal or even a shower?"

"I can't remember," she mumbled, "I've been too afraid to leave him. I don't want him to die while I'm gone. I don't want him to be alone."

"He won't be alone. I'll stay with him. But you need to take some time to reenergize," Kyle advised her, "You've got a tough road ahead of you, Karen, and you're going to need all of your strength."

Karen swung an uncertain look between Kyle and Danny as she weighed Kyle's offer. She had to admit the thought of a hot shower did sound seductive. There was one available in the surgical ICU lounge for the families of patients who were staying overnight so she wouldn't have to go far. She hadn't had a change of clothes in the last few days and God only knew the last time she had run a brush through her hair. For someone who had always been very conscientious about her appearance, it was difficult not to feel a little disgusted over her unkempt state. At the very least, a quick turn under the hot spray would help her to feel half human again.

She made a quick grab for her overnight bag. "You have my cell phone number," she told Kyle as she gathered together her things, "You'll call me immediately if anything happens with him and I mean _anything_. The nurses told me that if his heart rate starts to decrease that it could be a sign that he's starting to let go, so I don't care what changes, even if it seems insignificant to you, I want to know about it."

"I promise I'll call you," Kyle vowed.

Mollified, Karen leaned down to press an affectionate kiss to Danny's forehead, gently stroking his tangled hair back from his face. "Sweetheart, I'm going to leave you with Kyle Masterson. I'll be gone for just a little while," she informed him quietly, "I'll be back. I promise I'll be back so wait for me, okay? Wait for me."

Kyle watched the exchange with an aching heart. He was brimming with empathy for her plight but also thoroughly grateful at the same time that he didn't have to endure it. He had come close enough with Jo already. She hadn't needed the ICU at the time. Instead, she had been given a reversal agent and had received supportive care in the hospital over the course of a day and a half but that had been more than enough. Kyle knew all too well the fear that was running rampant inside of Karen Desai at that time. He wouldn't wish that type of pain on his worst enemy.

When Karen was gone, he assumed the seat she'd vacated and turned a mournful stare towards Danny's still countenance. The ashen teenage boy lying in that hospital bed was a far cry from the defiant young man he had come to know over the past few months. The thought of his young life being extinguished before he'd even had a real opportunity to live it was such a colossal waste. Even when Kyle had believed Danny to be a conscienceless killer, Kyle couldn't quite suppress the part of him that had admired the teen's ability to remain cool under pressure, his fortitude and mostly his stubborn determination to live life on his own terms. That had never lessened his determination to nail Danny for his perceived crimes but Kyle had always hoped that for Danny's sake and for Jo's that Danny's resilience would one day enable him to rise above a life of crime and make something more of himself. He had never relinquished his optimism that Danny could be rehabilitated.

Now Kyle understood from where that gut premonition had sprung. The truth of it was that Danny had never committed any murders at all. His one real crime, beyond jumping bail in a stolen car, had been placing his trust in the wrong people and for that he would pay with his life. It was most definitely a waste, Kyle pondered sadly, and unfortunately something that could have been avoided had the adults in his life been paying attention. Kyle would carry his guilt over that for a long time to come.

He sighed at the realization, his heart growing heavier by the second. "I don't know how much fight you have left in you, kid," he murmured to Danny fiercely, "but if there's even a little bit left, you gotta fight and you gotta fight harder than you ever have in your entire life. Do it for your mother. I don't know if she's going to survive without you."

Karen returned less than a half an hour later, as pale and haggard as she had been before she left but, at least, refreshed physically, dressed in clean clothes and with clean, wet hair twisted back from her face in a severe knot. She and Kyle resumed their silent vigil, both watching Danny for some sign that he would rally or fade. Not long after Karen resituated herself at Danny's bedside, she and Kyle were both informed of the girls' arrival and were directed by the nurse to meet them out in the ICU lounge. Upon seeing Karen, both girls flung themselves into the grieving woman's waiting arms while Kyle exchanged a grateful embrace with his wife.

Kyle felt as if he'd just endured an entire day in battle. He must have looked it as well because Tess gave him a soft, reassuring kiss. "Has it been bad?" she asked.

"He's maintaining, I guess. But it's pretty clear his doctors think this is it."

Tess hitched her chin over in Karen's direction. "How's she holding up?" she whispered.

"Just barely," he said, "I couldn't be in her shoes for all the world. I'd go crazy."

Together they watched as Karen gradually released a sobbing Lacey and Jo. "I'm so glad you two could make it," she was telling both girls presently, "I know that Danny would want you here." She regarded Judy, who mostly hung back from the group, with an appreciative look. "Thank you so much for bringing her. I know you haven't approved of her relationship with Danny so this means a lot."

"I couldn't have imagined doing anything else," Judy replied, "I'm so sorry this is happening to you, Karen."

"It's not happening to me," Karen whispered grimly, "I'm not the one who's dying. Danny is the one who is suffering right now but...we'll change that soon."

Lacey recoiled with a whimper of pain. "Are you sure we have to do this, Mrs. Desai?" she cried, "I think it's a mistake! I don't want to take him off of the machine! What if it's too soon? Maybe he needs more time! It doesn't feel right!"

Judy reached out to grab hold of her hand. "Lacey, don't do this," she admonished softly, "This isn't helping."

"No! Don't tell me to be quiet! Someone has to say something!" she snapped, yanking her hand away, "I mean, we are talking about _killing_ him after all! Right?"

Karen shook her head sadly. "Sweetheart, that's not what we're doing. You can't look at it that way or the guilt will eat you alive."

"You're taking away his last chance for survival," Lacey argued tearfully, "Once he's off that machine then that's it. He's done and it's really over."

Until that very moment, Lacey had mostly convinced herself that she was resigned to Danny's inevitable death. Even though he had managed to survive far beyond their initial prediction, his doctors had never provided them with much hope that he would recover. On the slim possibility that he did regain consciousness, they were absolutely certain that the Danny who awakened would most likely not be the Danny they had known before. They had made it clear again and again that Danny was lost to them. And, for the most part, Lacey thought she believed it...that was until she was faced with the prospect of removing Danny from life support and she unexpectedly acknowledged the part of her that continued to cling to hope.

As long as the breathing tube was in place, Danny had time to come back to them. There remained the tiny expectation that he could wake up because his heart continued to beat...because he was still, technically, alive. But if they took away the ventilator then they took away that chance. They would take away her last hope and Lacey wasn't at all ready to relinquish that. She didn't hesitate to make her feelings on the matter clear to Karen either.

"Sweetheart, I know that this is difficult for you to accept," Karen began gently, "but there is very little chance that Danny will recover. That machine isn't keeping him alive now so much as it is performing functions that Danny can no longer maintain for himself. We're prolonging the inevitable, Lacey. The doctors have said that again and again."

"That doesn't mean that there no chance at all!" Lacey maintained in tearful stubbornness, "He needs more time. He'll come around if we just wait a little longer. I know it!"

Karen framed Lacey's face in her hands and pressed a tender kiss to the weeping girl's forehead. "Lacey, I promise you that we wouldn't be having this conversation at all if I thought that were true."

In the end, after a short but anguish filled debate, it was decided that Lacey and Jo would go inside alone to say their final goodbyes and afterwards Danny would be removed from the ventilator as planned. There was nothing more that modern medicine could do for him. It was in Danny's hands now or, perhaps, a power higher than their own. In the meantime, he would be surrounded by his family and friends when he took his final breaths and he would know without a doubt that he had been loved. It was a difficult choice but it seemed to be the only option they had left.

Jo and Lacey entered his hospital room on wooden legs that were devoid of feeling, their hands clasped together tightly in both shared grief and steadfast solidarity. They both stumbled to a halt upon seeing him again, bombarded anew by how terrible he looked even though they had entered with full knowledge of his current state of health. Still, it was difficult to reconcile the dying boy on the bed with the smiling, brooding, mercurial goofball they had come to love so dearly. Trembling and clammy, Jo was the first to break the unendurable silence in the room because Lacey wasn't able to speak past the tears burning in her throat. Typically, she opened with a wry quip.

"You never do anything halfway, do you, Desai? Even when we were kids, you always had to be the center of the universe. All you had to do was sniffle and me and Lacey would come running to hold your hand and fix your booboo. Not much has changed, huh?" Her words caught on an anguished sob. "God, Danny! I'm so pissed off at you right now that I can't see straight! It wasn't supposed to turn out like this!"

Lacey wasn't surprised by Jo's outburst of anger. In fact, she didn't attempt to admonish her for the harsh words at all because she too was struggling with similar feelings. She was devastated by the impending loss for sure but beneath that eviscerating pain was also a simmering anger and she had no idea how to channel it. She stepped closer to his bedside and stretched out her hand to caress his cheek briefly, her features twisted in an anguished grimace.

"Damn you, Danny," she whispered tersely, "You just _had_ to go looking for him! I knew you weren't going to find any closure! I knew it was a mistake. I should have listened to my instincts and called the police as soon as we learned for sure that your dad was alive! We could have avoided all of this! You _knew_ he was a killer! What did you think was going to happen, huh?"

"We did this your way because we trusted you when you said that it was the right thing," Jo charged him tearfully, "You said that we didn't have any other choice but look what happened! So you need to figure out a way to fix this, Danny, because this is it! This is the last time the three of us will be together if you don't _do_ something besides lie in this stupid bed!"

"We fought for you," Lacey urged him, "We believed in you and we didn't give up. Now it's your turn. You don't get to give up."

"You owe us," Jo told him fiercely, "You owe Rico and you owe Lacey and you owe me! So, you'd better not die, Desai, because I'm never going to forgive you for it!"

"Neither will I," Lacey vowed, "You promised me that we would be together and you swore to me that you would never lie to me again. Please don't go back on your word now..."

The mournful pleas had barely left Lacey's mouth before Danny's ventilator suddenly began alarming wildly. Jo and Lacey jumped in fright, thrown into a frenzied panic as all of his monitors started clanging simultaneously. That panic became outright hysteria as a bustling processional of nurses came charging into the room, elbowing Jo and Lacey aside in an effort to get closer to their patient.

"What's happening? What's happening?" both girls kept screaming in tandem as they were unceremoniously shoved from the room. "Is he dying? Tell us what's going on! No! Don't make us leave! Please don't make us leave!" They were made even more frantic by the idea that their last words to him had been filled with recrimination and bitterness rather than love and tenderness. They hovered at the entrance, breaths frozen as they waited to hear the news they had dreaded for the better part of a week.

As the outside world seemed to slow to a mind-numbing crawl, Lacey and Jo watched helplessly as the nurses scurried swiftly about the room recalculating his IV drip rate and reassessing his wildly vacillating vital signs. All the while, Danny's monitors kept blaring loudly. Finally, they heard someone shout, "Page the MD and Respiratory! We need them at bedside now!" That was all the confirmation the girls needed to know that Danny was taking his final breaths. They were clutching each other and sobbing uncontrollably when one of the nurses finally emerged from the chaos and approached them. But it was the eerie recommencement of silence behind her that caused their hearts to tighten with fear.

Once again, Jo was the one who found the wherewithal to speak and voice the question that was foremost in her and Lacey's heart. "Is that it?" she wept desperately, "Is he gone? Did he die?"

"No, honey, he's not dead," the nurse reassured her with a burgeoning smile, "This is a good thing. He's agitated and he's trying to breath over the tube. That's why everything in there was going off like crazy."

Lacey asked the next question but it was laced with tentative strands of hope. "So what exactly does that mean?"

"It means that he's fighting."


	36. Chapter Thirty Five

**Chapter Thirty Five**

"Remarkable," Dr. Rettmann murmured in fascination as he shined his penlight in Danny's left eye before moving on this his right, "Absolutely remarkable." Danny, for his part, tried not to fidget too much under the doctor's examination but his confusion and unease was palpable. He kept darting nervous glances over at his mother throughout, as if silently begging her, "Get me out of here!" Anxious though he was, Danny obediently squeezed the physician's hands when instructed and pushed and pulled against them when instructed.

Danny had fully regained consciousness less than thirty six hours after he began making his first attempts to breathe independently. The decision was quickly made to remove him from the breathing tube, as it became clear that its placement was causing him increasing distress. Once it had been determined that he met all the necessary criteria to maintain adequate respirations, the apparatus was removed entirely and Danny was ventilator free for the first time in a week.

Karen, Lacey and Jo had hovered restlessly at his bedside during the ordeal. They had been stationed at the hospital since Danny first showed his first dramatic signs of life, taking turns at his bedside in between camping out in the ICU lobby. What had begun as a death vigil with plans of organ donation in the aftermath quickly became a prayer circle as everyone waited to see if Danny would continue improving. He did.

However, some variables with his health remained. No one had been sure if Danny would be neurologically intact upon his waking and everyone prepared themselves for everything from memory deficits to the possibility that he might not even be the same Danny. Those first few minutes after he had opened his eyes with real recognition he had been groggy and unfocused and seemed to have a great deal of difficulty coordinating his motor functions. His first words however, which were hoarse and nearly inaudible after more than a week of lingering stasis, were delivered in typical Danny fashion and managed to quell any remaining anxiety.

"Since you guys are all standing around, can somebody get me a cheeseburger? I'm starving."

The request, delivered with the utmost sincerity and just a hint of sarcasm, was just the thing needed to dispel the protracted tension and fear that had held his family and friends hostage for the better part of a week. Karen, Jo and Lacey shared their first genuine laugh in what felt like ages. After that, optimism began to slowly creep back into their hearts. Danny was breathing on his own. He was talking like himself. He had some measure of awareness. Although, there were blood test that needed to be run and further tests that needed to be administered, they were all good preliminary signs.

Dr. Rettmann stepped back from the bed, muttering under his breath yet again, "Just remarkable... I can't get over it." Danny blinked up at him with a comical expression as the doctor added, "Alright, just a few more things and then I'll let you have some time with your family. Tell me your name."

It was difficult for Danny to suppress his eye roll since he had been asked that question no less than a dozen times by a dozen different people he didn't know since he awakened. Still, he answered in a roughened voice, "Danny Desai."

"And how old are you, Danny?" Dr. Rettmann pressed further.

"Sixteen. I'll be seventeen in two months...at least, I _think_ so." He looked over at Karen for verification.

"You're right," she reassured him with a trembling smile, "Remember, you've only missed a week, Danny."

"Just a week...just a week..." he mumbled to himself.

After he addressed his mother, the doctor then proceeded to gesture towards Karen, where she hovered near the entrance of the room with Lacey and Jo. "And since you're asking her questions, can you tell me who this lovely young woman is, Danny?" he prompted.

Danny's lips quirked in a weak smile. "That's my mom. Her name is Karen Desai," he added before the physician could ask him.

"And who is that standing next to her?"

"That's Jo Marie. She's my best friend."

"And who's the pretty brunette right on the end?"

Danny angled an adoring look over at Lacey, his gaze softening considerably as he answered quietly, "Lacey. My girl."

Dr. Rettmann clapped his hands together in satisfaction. "Well, I'm pleased with everything so far. Neurologically, everything appears to be functioning beautifully. He does have some deficits with his memory and a bit of residual weakness which is to be expected but there seems to be a concentration on his left side that we suspect might be the result of a minor stroke."

"A stroke?" Karen balked in horror, "He's sixteen years old! How could he have had a stroke?"

"It's not uncommon for patients who have suffered Danny's particular set of injuries," Dr. Rettmann explained, "We'll need to do a head CT to confirm my suspicions. If I'm right, we'll proceed accordingly but it's not something you should be overly concerned about. He's answering questions appropriately. He has full control of his motor functions. He'll do fine. I don't expect that he'll have any lasting deficits as a result. With some physical therapy and a lot of determination, I'm sure he'll make a complete recovery. I'm beginning to see that your son is a young man full of surprises, Mrs. Desai."

Danny reached out to snag hold of the physician's lab coat and give it a weak tug. "Are you sure? I play soccer, Doc," he wondered apprehensively, "I don't want to be stuck in this bed."

"You won't be. I have a feeling that once you set your mind to something, you don't stop until you've accomplished your goal, Danny. You've made liars of every physician on your team and we love it. In the meantime, no cheeseburgers for you, my friend. We're going to keep you without anything by mouth until we can run further tests." He smiled at Danny with a marveling shake of his head. "Just amazing," he said again before finally excusing himself and leaving Danny with his family.

"Okay..." Danny croaked after he had gone, "So far I've learned that I'm 'remarkable' and 'amazing' but I still have no idea how I ended up in the hospital. Who wants to fill me in?"

His mother stepped closer to the bed and gripped his hand. "What's the last thing you remember, sweetheart?"

Danny's brow furrowed in concentration. "I...I think we were in a motel. I had to share the bed with Rico and he kept kicking me." He glanced at Jo and Lacey for confirmation of that. "Were we at a motel or am I losing it?"

Lacey bit back a teary smile. "You're not losing it. We stayed overnight. Do you remember anything after that?"

He shook his head with a frustrated scowl. "The last thing I really remember is talking to you about..." He trailed off into silence, reluctant to mention their near pregnancy miss in front of his mother and Jo. "Well, you know about everything that happened at the fort," he continued hazily, "And then I woke up in here. I have this fuzzy impression that some other things happened because I have all these fragmented pictures in my head and I remember hearing Mom talk to me but...everything is mostly a blank." He expelled a weary sigh, clearly left exhausted by the mental exertion alone. "It's there but I can't get to it."

Karen placed her hand to his shoulder and soothed him in a calming voice. "Don't push yourself," she advised, "The memories will come when they come. You should rest for now."

"I don't want to rest. Can't _you_ tell me?" Danny implored.

"You only just regained consciousness a little while ago," Karen reasoned, "and you're still a bit fragile. Why don't we hold off that discussion until you're stronger?"

"I guess that means whatever you have to tell me is bad," he reasoned grimly, "I'm in the hospital, so it must be." He grunted and rolled a questioning look over at Jo and Lacey once again. "Did we find _him_ , at least?" he asked.

Despite his attempt at being deliberately vague, no doubt for his mother's benefit, Jo addressed the situation without subterfuge. "She already knows about your father being alive, Danny. We told her after you were brought to the hospital."

He darted an agitated look between his mother and Jo. "What about the rest of it?"

"She knows _everything_ ," Jo confirmed softly, "I told her all of it...about how Tara used to hurt you and the truth about her murder, your dad and Regina...everything there was to tell. There aren't any more secrets. I sang like a canary."

Danny groaned in mournful consternation, causing his monitors to beep in protest as his heart rate accelerated. "Why? God, Jo! Why would you do that?"

Karen sifted her fingers through his tangled hair, softly quieting his lamentations in between reassuring his swiftly arriving nurse that everything was fine and Danny was not about to go into a fatal heart arrhythmia. "Don't work yourself up and don't blame Jo," she admonished him gently after the nurse had gone, "The truth would have come to light eventually. _You_ should have been the one to tell me, especially about Tara and what she had been doing to you all those years. I wish you would have trusted me more."

Gradually, his angry scowl faded and he calmed enough that the monitor screen stopped flashing in warning. "It wasn't about trust, Mom, not recently anyway. I wanted to put it behind me. I didn't want you to feel guilty."

"Sweetheart, I'm going to feel guilty no matter what. You have to stop thinking that lies and secrets are an acceptable way of living. They don't preserve relationships. They destroy them and they make trust impossible. We can't have anymore lies between us."

"Says the woman who won't even tell me how I ended up in the hospital," Danny grunted sardonically, "You're keeping _that_ secret but that's okay for you."

"That's for the sake of your health," Karen insisted, "You nearly died, Danny. I'm not taking any chances with you. When you're stronger, then we'll talk about everything."

"Okay..whatever," Danny sighed as his eyelids began to droop heavily with fatigue, "Fine. I'm too tired to argue with you anyway."

Karen dropped a kiss to his forehead. "You should sleep. It's been a very eventful day and I know you must be exhausted. I'm ready to drop myself but I have a few things I need to take care of first."

His eyes flashed open. "No," he protested sharply, "I don't want you to leave." He blinked up at Lacey and Jo, his eyes lingering on Lacey in particular. "Any of you."

"I won't be gone very long," Karen reassured him, "I need to make arrangements with the hospital to see if we can get you flown back to New York once you're stable enough."

Jo reached out to give his fingers a fleeting squeeze. "And I need to check in with my folks and bring them up to speed on what's happening with you," she told him, "I'm pretty sure we'll be staying in town another night so I'll definitely be back here."

Danny angled a hopeful glance towards Lacey and she smiled. "I'm not going anywhere," she whispered, "You're stuck with me."

"I'll let your mom know you're going to stay in here for a while," Jo said as Lacey took a seat at Danny's bedside and swept up his hand. The last thing she and Karen saw before they exited the room was Lacey placing a tender kiss to Danny's fingers.

Once the sliding door had been pulled shut, Danny favored Lacey with a lethargic smile. "So tell me the truth," he prompted, "How awful do I look right now?"

"Eh...your hair is starting to get longer again and you've got some nice chin scruff going on, but..." Lacey hedged, "...you've definitely seen better days, Desai."

"Yeah, you too, Porter," he joked.

She pinned him with a narrowed glare and lightly pinched his flank but he was too tired to yelp. "Oh screw you, Danny. It's nice to know that almost dying didn't make you _less_ of an ass! Forgive me for not taking the time to beautify myself! I've only been going out of my mind with worry for you this whole time."

"I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Don't hurt me. You look beautiful just like always. Just tired," he observed as he peered at her more closely, gathering the strength to reach out and caress her cheek in a clumsy caress, "And maybe a little sad."

Lacey pressed his hand against her cheek and kissed his palm. "I have been sad," she confessed gruffly, "But it's getting better now."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"And that's because of me, right? Because I'm the sunshine of your life?"

His unapologetic hubris provoked an eye roll from Lacey. "You're such an idiot. Yes, it's all because of you."

"So then you can show your gratitude by telling me how I got here. Come on, Lace," he cajoled sweetly, "You know you want to."

Lacey laughed softly. "Nope. Not happening. You heard your mother. Not until you're stronger."

He flashed her a disgruntled grimace. "Well, will you at least tell me _why_ I'm in the hospital?"

Her smile faltered as his question brought with it a tumble of memories that she had been struggling to keep at bay for more than a week. "You were shot, Danny."

Understandably, that simple statement provoked another series of questions. "Shot?" he echoed blearily, "By who? Who would shoot me? Did the cops find us? I'm not under arrest, am I? Is that why I'm here?" Each word he fired off was punctuated by the accelerated bleeping of his heart monitor.

Lacey threw an anxious glance at the screen and saw that his heart rate had become as high as 120 and was steadily climbing. "Will you calm down?" she hissed at him, "You're going to freak out the nurses and then they're going to kick me out of here!"

Danny took several deep breaths, counting them off as he did so. "Okay," he said when he was more composed, "Who shot me?"

"You know I can't answer that," she murmured in a woebegone tone, "But I will tell you that you're not under arrest. So put that worry out of your mind."

"How bad was the gunshot?" he asked, "It had to be pretty bad if they have me in the ICU."

"You lost a kidney and your spleen _and_ you had a collapsed lung before they shoved in a chest tube."

His lips quirked in a wry smile. "That would explain the incredible amount of pain I'm in right now but, overall it doesn't sound too bad."

"You also may have had a stroke," she reminded him with a dour pout, "Let's not forget that part. It just keeps getting better."

"Still doable," he quipped lightly, "You heard the doc. I'm 'remarkable.' A stroke is cake." He angled a searching glance across his surroundings. "I'm more concerned with the fact that I need to take a leak and there doesn't seem to be a bathroom anywhere in this place. Will you help me find one?"

"First of all, you're not getting out of this bed," Lacey cautioned him sternly, "Second of all, you don't need to worry about using the bathroom. You have a catheter inserted into your bladder. I think the nurse said it was normal for you to have the sensation of needing to go but you don't actually have to go because your bladder is always being drained."

"What?" Danny balked, "I have a _catheter_?"

He groped for the edge of the thin sheet that covered him and lifted the edge, slowly drawing his hospital gown over his waist as he did so. There was, indeed, a thin tube winding out from the head of his penis. Danny collapsed back against his pillow with a mortified groan. "Oh, man...this is terrible! What happened? Will I be okay?" Learning that he had lost a kidney and his spleen hadn't fazed him in the least but the realization that he had a catheter inserted into his most delicate and precious body part sent him into a mild frenzy.

Lacey couldn't help herself. She melted into an amused fit of giggles, her heart lightened with hope that they finally may have turned a corner towards something good. Once she managed to reassure Danny that there would be no lasting effects to the functionality of his penis, he drifted off to sleep not too long afterwards. Between exhaustion and the painkillers, Lacey suspected that he would be doing plenty of that over the course of the next several days. Unfortunately, once Danny had fallen asleep and staff arrived to transport him for his CT scan Lacey had no further excuse for avoiding her mother. After two days of evading, she was going to have to face Judy and finish the conversation they had started before Karen Desai's phone call.

The option for hospitalization and treatment were still on the table as far as Judy was concerned. Thankfully, her mother hadn't pushed the issue given the circumstances but now that Danny was on the mend, Lacey had little doubt the argument would be brought to the forefront yet again. Lacey didn't necessarily believe she needed further evaluation. In her mind, she had gone through a brief rough patch, buckled under the pressure and now she had recovered. Now that Danny was doing better, she was ready to simply put the entire terrifying affair behind her and move on with her life.

However, Lacey feared the execution of that goal might be easier said than done when she stepped out into the surgical ICU waiting lounge and spied her mother and Karen Desai sequestered away in a far corner, conversing together in hushed whispers. The looks of intensity on both of their faces instantly raised her suspicion. Those feelings only grew when she approached them and both women gave guilty starts, unable to meet her eyes right away. It was fairly evident that _she_ had been their topic of conversation just then.

"What are you doing here?" Karen asked her, "Did something happen with Danny?"

"No, he's fine. He fell asleep right before they came to get him for his test," Lacey asked, "He had a lot of questions about what happened. I don't know how much longer we'll be able to put him off."

"I'll ask Dr. Rettmann about it," Karen said. "If you don't mind, Lacey, I'd like to be the one to tell him about Vikram. I think he should hear it from me."

"Of course. Just let me know if you need anything."

Karen lurched forward to enfold Lacey in a quick hug. "I will. I love you, Lacey. Thank you so much for everything you've done for my son."

"You're welcome, Mrs. Desai." She smiled at Lacey one last time before excusing herself. It was impossible to miss the tears swimming in her bright blue eyes when she did. Lacey whipped to face her mother with an accusing glare. "What did you say to her?"

"We were talking about Danny and the long road he has ahead of him," Judy replied calmly, "Not just physically but emotionally. He's going to need a lot of therapy, Lacey. So are you."

"Yeah, I...uh...I've been thinking about that lately," Lacey prevaricated, "and I don't think I need therapy after all, Mom."

As expected, her mother exploded in disbelief. "Wait. What are you saying?"

"Hear me out before you get upset!" Lacey pleaded meekly, "I was going through a rough time, a really horrible time and I felt a little hopeless and I said some crazy things that I didn't mean. But that's over now. Danny is getting better and I'm so much calmer than I was before. I'm okay, Mom. I don't need to rehash everything that happened by going to a bunch of therapy sessions with a bunch of strangers."

"Lacey, your inability to talk about what happened is exactly the reason you need therapy."

"That doesn't make any sense! Are you really giving me a hard time because I want to put this horrible week behind me and move on? I thought being positive was a good thing!"

"You're simplifying matters and you know that." Judy lowered her voice to a hiss as she added, "Lacey, you had a breakdown. You had to be strapped to a bed and medicated. You made a detailed plan for suicide. This is not something you shrug off and put behind you! You have to address everything that brought you to that point! Danny getting shot might have been what put you over the edge but that isn't where everything started."

"What do you know about it? When did you suddenly become a head doctor, Mom?"

"Don't dismiss what I'm saying. I'm really worried about you, Lacey!"

"Don't worry," Lacey insisted fervently, "I'm okay. I swear it!"

"How am I supposed to trust that when I've seen with my own eyes that you are _not_ okay?" her mother retorted, "I don't want to come home one day and find you in the bathroom with your wrists slashed."

"That's not going to happen!" Lacey cried, "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

Judy snapped to attention. "Who exactly is 'everyone?'"

"Jo," she answered reluctantly, "She said something along the same lines the other day."

"Well, if she's concerned then I'm really worried. Jo would recognize the signs better than anyone."

"And that's the point," Lacey sighed, "Jo is projecting right now. I know she means well but, I'm not her. I had a horrible week and I reacted badly which I think is understandable given the fact I watched my boyfriend's not so dead father shoot him at close range before blowing his own brains out. I think I'm entitled to lose it a little."

"What about the divorce and your father leaving and Danny going away and you and Jo drifting apart?" Judy charged softly, "What do you do with all of those feelings, baby girl? Where do they go?"

Lacey turned her face aside and bit her lip. "I just don't think about them," she said thickly, "Why is it so wrong that I don't want to dwell on negative things? I want to focus on Danny and helping with his recovery. I want to be happy."

"This isn't happiness you're feeling, Lacey. It's denial. You can only hold those emotions at bay for so long before they spill over into everything," Judy advised, "It's already happening and you need to deal with that." Her mother leaned in close and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "You and Danny both have a ton of issues to work through and you need to focus on yourselves and not a relationship right now. How are you supposed to help him when you can't even help yourself?"

The question reverberated in Lacey's mind for the rest of the evening, long after she and her mother had procured their hotel room for the night and Judy had dropped off into exhausted slumber. Lacey, unfortunately, was unable to sleep at all. As she lay in her bed that night and stared up at the ceiling, Lacey couldn't deny that her mother had a point about her and Danny's precarious emotional states. She wasn't okay at all. While she was relieved by Danny's recovery and her outlook for the future wasn't as bleak as it had been before, Lacey continued to feel restless and filled with unnamed panic. She felt as if she was treading on eggshells, in perpetual dread of the next coming disaster and Lacey wasn't certain she had the emotional reserves to withstand another crisis.

Meanwhile, Lacey had no idea how she was supposed to tell Danny that. He was dealing with enough already without adding _her_ problems to the list. Once Danny learned what Vikram had done to him, he was going to fall apart. Not only would he be dealing with his physical recovery but he would also need help navigating his way through the conflicted emotions his father's suicide would very likely evoke. And, sadly, Lacey wasn't entirely sure that person could be her. She couldn't even _think_ about that moment without breaking into a cold sweat. Just remembering the acrid smell of gunpowder in the frigid air from that horrible day made Lacey physically ill.

She also couldn't forget that Danny's health was still in a very delicate place. He was awake and talking now but he had a long road to recovery and that road was littered with land mines. Danny was still at risk for infection, blood clots and heart failure. She had already lost so much in her life...first the stability of her family, then her father, then her friendships with Danny and Jo... And while she had regained many of those things, the pain over their initial loss was still very acute. The fear of losing them again was always, always with her.

Lacey couldn't withstand yet another upheaval. She couldn't go through it again and she certainly couldn't imagine _talking_ about how those losses had made her feel. As much as Lacey wanted to put the past behind her and move on, she seriously doubted that Danny would want the same thing and that was the part that scared her the most.

The following morning Lacey returned to the hospital with the resolve that she would keep quiet about her issues for now. She wasn't keeping a secret, she told herself, so much as she was postponing the discussion for a more convenient time. Jo, of course, thought it was a terrible idea. She was in full agreement with Judy Porter and seemed to think that the sooner Lacey entered treatment, the sooner she could benefit herself and Danny. Unlike Judy Porter, however, she didn't try to push Lacey into making a decision but merely expressed her concern and encouraged Lacey to consider her advice. Although she didn't agree, Lacey promised that she would.

Having reached a stalemate, the girls walked together for Danny's hospital room. As they started to enter, they encountered Karen Desai as she was exiting through the sliding door. She waylaid them before they could go inside. "Just some forewarning, he's a little upset right now," she said, "I told him what happened with Vikram."

Lacey frowned and burst out, "Why? I thought we agreed that we should wait until he was stronger."

"Dr. Rettmann seemed to believe that keeping the truth from Danny was causing him more stress than telling him what happened," Karen said, "He kept asking so...I told him."

Jo swallowed thickly. "So how did he take it? What did he say?"

"He's...he's in shock. At first he was in denial that Vikram had shot him at all. He didn't want to believe that he was dead. It's finally starting to sink in. Now he's feeling angry and confused. He asked me to leave just now because he said he needed a few minutes to process everything."

"Should we come back later then?" Jo asked.

"No. I think he'll want to see you. You'll be able to answer the questions for him that I couldn't."

When Lacey and Jo slipped inside they found Danny positioned upright in his bed. He was still surrounded by a tangle of IVs and wires but thankfully his room was virtually empty of all other supportive equipment. Even his urinary catheter had also been removed. Physically, he looked a thousand times better but psychologically he was clearly wrecked. He lifted dark eyes to Lacey and Jo that were stormy with emotion. Jo, like always, was the first to speak.

"Your mom said she told you about what happened," she began softly.

"Oh, you mean how my dad took me and my friends hostage, shot me and then killed himself?" Danny asked with artificial cheerfulness, "Yeah, she just filled me in on the whole thing. Do I know how to create memories or what?"

Lacey rushed to his bedside and swept up his hand. "I'm so sorry, Danny. I hate that this happened to you. I know you wanted things to be different."

He gently but resolutely pulled his fingers from her grasp and placed his clenched fists into his lap. His features were inscrutable when he said, "It didn't just happen to me." He surveyed her with a penetrating look. "It happened to all of us, Lacey... _because_ of me."

"That's not true," she whispered.

Rather than acknowledging that at all, Danny turned his attention to Jo. "How's Rico right now? My mom said he had to be in the hospital overnight...that he had a skull fracture and bleeding in his brain."

"It sounds worse than it was. He's doing pretty good now," Jo said, "He's still having some headaches and he has this gnarly bruise to the side of his face but his doctor said that the bleeding has mostly resolved. He's fine."

"I'm sorry, Jo," Danny mumbled, visibly struggling against tears, "I never meant for any of you guys to be hurt."

"How were you supposed to know that your dad was going to snap like that?"

"He'd already killed two times before and one of his victims was his own sister," he reasoned, "That was a pretty good indication. I should have known better. I should have protected you."

Lacey placed her hand on his shoulder. "Stop blaming yourself," she reproved him softly, "Your dad is the one who was responsible for all of this and no one else. It's over now and we can put it behind us. You're okay. Rico and Jo are okay...and I'm okay."

"But you're not okay, Lacey," he refuted in a quiet tone, "Are you?" Lacey and Jo exchanged a surreptitious glance as he continued, "My mom told me about _that_ too. She said that everything that happened was too much for you and you lost it."

"That's...it's more complicated than that..."

He regarded her with a mournful look. "So they didn't have to tie you to a bed and medicate you?"

She immediately jumped on the defensive at the accusation she perceived in his tone. "Give me a break, Danny! Your dad shot you right in front of me," she argued, "Yeah, I flipped out. I freely admit that. You almost _died_ out there! I actually felt your blood _running through my fingers_! It wasn't my finest moment, okay!"

"Is that why you wanted to hurt yourself?"

Lacey stumbled back a small step. She darted a fleeting, betrayed glance at Jo but the blonde firmly shook her head, indicating that she hadn't said a word. Lacey forced herself to meet Danny's eyes again. "Where did you hear that?"

"Are you saying it's not true?" His tone was mixture of desperation and hope.

"I...I was upset," Lacey stammered hoarsely, "I said some things I didn't mean. That's all."

Danny looked to Jo once more. "Is that true? Was she just upset, Jo, or is there more to it?"

"Don't ask her!" Lacey cried, "Ask me! It happened to _me_ and I'm telling you I'm fine!"

"Really? So it's not supposed to bother me at all that you were planning _to kill yourself_? I'm just supposed to shrug that off?"

Lacey flinched and doubled over, folding her arms across her middle as if she were in pain. "Oh my God..."

Jo did her best to diffuse the situation. "Danny, we thought you were going to die," she argued, "Lacey was a mess. I was a mess. It got a little crazy for a while there. She didn't cope well. She lost it a little. Sometimes that happens."

"Do you think she needs help, Jo? Yes or no?"

After appraising Lacey with an apologetic glance, Jo answered somewhat reluctantly, "Yes. Yes, I think she needs help." When Lacey released a keening whimper at that, she rushed to added, "But that is not a reflection on you or your relationship! Yeah, it's true that Lacey has some things to work out and she's going to do that. But that has _nothing_ to do with you, Danny. You cannot blame yourself for what she's going through. You can't take that on."

"But it _is_ my fault...because I put her in that position! I put her in danger and I caused all of these problems for her-,"

"No! NO!" Lacey interrupted in denial, "I'm not going to let you act like us being together was a mistake!"

"It _was_ a mistake, Lacey! I just think we need a break from each other!" Danny announced forcefully. Both Lacey and Jo settled down in an instant and whipped to regard him with sharpened looks. In a calmer, quieter tone, he said, "I think we should take a step back and focus on ourselves for a while."

"Focus on ourselves?" Lacey echoed woodenly, "What are you talking about? How long is 'a while?'"

"Look, you know I love you. I love you so much but...I can't be with you anymore. Neither of us is emotionally healthy right now. We're not good for each other. I think being with me will hinder your recovery and vice versa. We need to give each other some space."

"Is that really what _you_ think, Danny?" she challenged, "Or is this your mom talking? Or, more specifically, is it _my_ mom?"

He closed his eyes briefly, neither confirming or denying that had been a topic of conversation with his mother. Instead, he said, "It's what _I_ think. This is what makes the most sense. It's what we need."

" _I_ don't need this!" Lacey bit out in denial, "This won't help _me_ at all!"

"Well, it's helping me!" he retorted.

His fierce conviction on the matter had Lacey shaking her head in disbelief. "Are you actually breaking up with me right now?"

"I don't see any other way this can work."

"Danny, I know you're probably freaked out because of everything that happened but don't do this. We have endured so much to be together," she argued softly, "It's never been easy but that's how I know we're the real thing. This is our latest challenge, okay. I know we can get through this if we stick together. Don't let our mothers get inside your head! We can do this."

He shook his head in firm resolve. "No, Lacey, I can't. Don't you get it? I can barely even _look_ at you because the guilt is so suffocating," Danny muttered gruffly, "I need to find a way to be okay with everything that's happened and I can't do that and be with you at the same time. I just can't."

"And you think breaking up is the answer?"

"Yes."

Her lips compressed in a grim, determined line. "I'm not going to beg you to change your mind."

"I'm not going to change it."

"This is it, Danny," she warned him, "If I walk out of here, then we're done for good."

"Then we're done for good."

She swallowed back the sob that threatened to bubble from her lips and squared her shoulders with proud resolve. "Okay," she conceded softly, "If that's how you feel, I guess I have to accept it."

"That's how I feel."

"Alright..." she managed in a thickened voice, "...so, I guess there's nothing else to say. I should probably go then." She crossed over to the exit for a hasty retreat out of there before she burst into tears. "I hope everything works out the way you want. Goodbye, Danny."

Jo stared speechlessly at Lacey's retreating back before turning to glare at Danny. She wasn't surprised to find him crying too. "What the hell did you just do?"

"I did what was best for her, Jo," he mumbled thickly, turning his face aside to conceal his falling tears, "That's what I did. It was the right thing."

"Is that what you think?" she challenged, "Because from where I'm standing you just acted like a total jackass! She's been at your bedside every moment she could! She's been crazy with worry for you and this is how you repay her? By stomping on her heart when she's barely holding it together? What's wrong with you? You're a complete idiot!"

He fixed her with glittering eyes. "What do you want me to do, Jo?"

"I don't know, Danny!" she cried, "But don't abandon her when she needs you so much! She didn't abandon _you_."

"That's not fair and that's not what I'm doing."

"Then what the hell _are_ you doing? Do you even know at this point?"

"Judy Porter told my mom that Lacey was shoving aside all of her issues so she could focus on me," Danny revealed hoarsely, "And I know it's true because that's completely Lacey's m.o. She was going to shrug off everything and run just like she always does and that's not healthy. I couldn't let her do that. She needs to think about herself. _That_ should be her priority, not me."

"So you think breaking up with her is going to help her do that?" Jo threw up her hands in exasperation. "Danny, don't you understand? Lacey is in love with you. You're going to be a priority to her whether you two are in a relationship or not! The only thing you did just now was rip her heart out for no good reason! God, you make me crazy!"

"I'm not good for her, Jo," he mumbled, "I'm not good for _anybody_."

"Says who?" she spat, "Tara? Your dad? That voice in your head that constantly tells you that you're a screw-up? Can't you see what you're doing? You're letting them win, Danny. Every time you believe the awful things your dad and Tara said to you, you're letting them win! They're both _dead_ and they're still pulling your strings and you're _letting_ them do it! Stop it!"

He regarded her with a tight expression, his hands clenched against his thighs. "You don't get it and you're never going to get it."

"Oh, I get it," Jo refuted stubbornly, "Maybe I didn't grow up in a messed up household like you did but I know what it's like to constantly wrestle with feelings of worthlessness and self-doubt. You never think you're good enough and so, instead of letting yourself be happy, you sabotage all the good in your life. Don't do that to yourself, Danny. And don't do it to Lacey."


	37. Chapter Thirty Six

**Chapter Thirty Six**

"Danny, are you sure this is a good idea?" At his request, Karen was making a diligent effort to help him up the stairs to his bedroom but they had only made it to the fourth step before Danny broke into a sweat from the exertion. She assisted him in leaning against the wall while he attempted to catch his breath. "Maybe we should rethink this. I can make up the guest room for you, honey."

He shook his head in staunch refusal. "Tara used to sleep in there. I'll pass."

"What about the sofa?" Karen suggested next, "You can bunk in the living room for the time being."

"No," he protested weakly, "I've been sleeping in strange beds for over a month now. I want my own. I'm already a fourth of the way there. Let's keep going."

Following his unexpected recovery, Danny had spent an additional three days in the ICU before his mother managed to get him transferred to a step-down unit in a New York area hospital not far from where they lived. During that three days, his doctors confirmed that he had, indeed, suffered a stroke in the day or so before he regained consciousness, which accounted for the persistent left sided weakness he was experiencing. He began physical therapy almost immediately afterwards, starting gradually with hand exercises designed to strengthen the use of his left hand and arm.

His therapy continued at the new hospital and, by the time he had been there a week, Danny was already able to get to and from his bed to the bathroom with the assistance of a walker. By the end of the following week, he needed only a cane and the decision was made to transfer him to a rehabilitation center where he could continue his progress. The week after that, he got rid of the cane but continued to walk with a pronounced limp as his gait remained unsteady. By the time he was finally released to return home, his limp was less noticeable and, nearly seven weeks after nearly dying, Danny could walk for short distances under his own power. Stairs, however, remained an enduring challenge. He had conquered the porch steps but the ones leading to the upstairs in his house were quickly proving to be his nemesis.

He slumped against the wall with a frustrated curse. "I'm so sick of feeling like an invalid," he muttered.

"You're not an invalid," Karen refuted, "You've made a lot of progress in a very short period of time. But your body is only going to do what it can do, so stop pushing yourself so hard. And, while you're at it, stop being so stubborn and let me make up the sofa for now. You'll be back in your own bed soon enough."

Disgruntled and disappointed, Danny jerked a nod of consent. Ten minutes later, however, he expelled a grateful sigh when he was finally able to collapse onto his makeshift bed and burrow beneath the blankets. He felt like he'd just endured a full cardiac workout. His mother knelt down before him and brushed away the damp, curling strands of hair that fell across his forehead.

"Do you need another pain pill?" she asked, noting his grimace of discomfort.

"I can manage it."

"Remember what they told you when we left the hospital. If you wait until the pain gets too bad the medicine won't help."

"I'm tired of feeling fuzzy and drugged out all of the time. I'd rather muscle through it."

"Danny, you were shot," his mother reasoned, "You've had your vital organs removed. You're going to be in pain. For the love of God, take a freaking pill!"

"Ugh. Fine! Whatever," he conceded grumpily.

As he watched his mother walk away, Danny's aggravated expression gradually gave way to sadness. He didn't know how to tell his mother that the real reason he didn't want to take the medication was because it made him drowsy. When he slept, he inevitably dreamed of his father and Lacey which only compounded the ache in his heart.

He hadn't spoken to her directly since that day in his hospital room. After everything he'd said to her, Danny wasn't surprised that she hadn't sought him out either. Lacey had a great deal of pride and she had made her feelings abundantly clear that day. Once she walked out she was done for good. She wasn't going to make any further attempts to contact him. If there was going to be any communication between them, _he_ was going to have to be the one to make the first move. And while he wasn't sure if he was ready or if it was even a good idea, Danny managed to keep apprised of her progress through regular reports from Jo and Rico. He asked about her regularly and often, though he was very careful not to question whether she did the same thing with him.

The day after their breakup, Lacey had entered a treatment facility at her mother's request. She was there for nearly two weeks. According to Jo, Lacey had emerged somber and a great deal more reserved but also more willing to discuss her feelings than she had been before. Jo seemed to think her personality shift was mainly due to the medication Lacey was taking and that, after a few months, she would find an even keel again.

Danny could well sympathize with that. In addition to his regular physical therapy, he was also seeing a psychiatrist two times a week due to his mother's insistence. He had even been given a name for his particular set of problems...PTSD with generalized anxiety disorder. So, in addition to the antibiotics, pain killers, his daily baby aspirin and the various inhalers that already made up his medication regimen, he also got to add anti-anxiety and antidepressants to the list as well. He often joked with his mother that he was a walking pharmacy, though she didn't seem to think it was very funny. He had to take refuge in levity, however, otherwise the resentment and anger he struggled with on a daily basis would eat him alive.

For Danny, it was paramount that he find the humor in his situation otherwise he might lose the will to even get out of bed in the mornings. His life had changed yet again, not only with the knowledge of what his father had done but the loss of Lacey and his compromised health. His body didn't even look the same. He now bore scars from his surgeries and the chest tube in addition to contending with the weight loss he'd suffered during his hospital stay. His mother was working diligently to fatten him up (and he had no idea there were so many ways to cook potatoes) but, all the hashbrowns in the world wouldn't make up for the muscle he'd wasted while bedridden. Some days he didn't even feel like himself at all...couldn't even fathom who _he_ was supposed to be.

The one thing that gave him true comfort was Lacey. Whenever he heard of her progress from Jo or Rico, he felt fortified and encouraged. She was starting to take her life back. That goal was happening in inches but, it _was_ happening. Danny wasn't sure she would have had the opportunity the make so much progress had they still been together. Most likely she would have neglected her own problems in favor of his and then they would have truly been screwed. Danny knew he had done the right thing but that knowledge did nothing to lessen the pain. Still, he maintained a determined mindset for the future. He wouldn't give up because she hadn't.

Danny was still playing that mantra over and over in his head when his mother reappeared with his painkillers, a glass of water and a sandwich. "I thought it would be better if you didn't take these on an empty stomach," she explained.

He nodded and down the pills she placed in his palm before managing to down at least half of his turkey sandwich. Just those actions alone taxed him thoroughly and he wilted back against the sofa with a fatigued sigh. "I'll really be glad when just the simple act of eating stops feeling like I've run a marathon."

Karen perched herself on the edge of the coffee table to regard him. "That's not the reason you're tired. You've been doing pretty well up until now. It's all the excitement from your discharge and the energy you expended getting from the car to the front door. You shouldn't have tried going upstairs after that. You're still recovering, Danny."

"So you keep reminding me, Mother."

She favored him with a wry smile. "So we're back to 'mother,' are we?"

Danny grunted a laugh and closed his eyes. "I mean it with the deepest affection."

Karen dropped a sound kiss to the crown of his tousled head. "I know you do."

When he sensed that she was still lingering Danny cracked open one eye to regard her. A wistful smile playing at the corners of his mouth, he asked, "Was there something else?"

"I just got off the phone with Judy Porter a little while ago."

Abruptly wide awake, Danny stiffened but tried to keep his tone neutral when he said, "I didn't hear the phone ring."

"That's because she called my cell phone."

"Oh. I didn't realize you two had exchanged personal numbers."

He sounded so petulant about that fact that Karen had to laugh. "I would think you'd be happy that the two of us are getting along."

"It might have been more useful if you'd managed to do that while Lacey and I were still together," Danny grumbled, "So what did she want?"

"She asked about you, wanted to know how you've been doing with your therapy," Karen said, "She and the girls just came back from visiting Sam in Seattle. She said that it was a pretty eventful trip and that Lacey was finally able to gain some closure with her father. She's doing very well. According to Judy, she's starting to conquer a lot of her demons."

He had a hard time speaking around the acrid lump of tears that formed in his throat but, he managed. "That's good. I'm glad for her."

Karen regarded him with a sorrowful expression, easily spying the telltale glistening in his eyes even with his quick attempt to duck his head. "I want to tell you that it was a very brave and selfless thing you did, Danny," she told him softly, "Lacey needed to focus on herself so that she could heal. You made it possible for her to do that."

"Isn't that what you _wanted_ me to do?"

"Yes. I thought it was best that you and Lacey take a break from each other," she acknowledged, "But the choice was yours. You didn't have to listen to me. For what it's worth, I think you did the right thing, sweetheart."

"Yeah, and now she hates me for it."

"She doesn't hate you."

"Mom, you didn't see her face that day. It was like I had gutted her. She honestly didn't see it coming. I felt horrible. I still do."

"But she survived it and so did you," his mother reassured him with an optimistic smile, "When you two get back together you'll be in a much better place."

"I think you're being way too hopeful there," Danny warned her, "Lacey isn't going to take me back. You don't know her like I do. I've burned her too many times. She's not going to give me another chance."

Karen shook her head, silently refuting his statement. "She loves you, Danny. Once she realizes that you were trying to act in her best interests, she'll forgive you."

"It doesn't matter what my motives were," he argued, "The one thing Lacey asked me to do when we got together was not to break her heart and I've done that too many times already to keep track. I knew when I told her it was over back at the hospital that it was really over. She might consent to be my friend again someday but as far as us being together in a relationship? That's not happening."

"If you believe that, then why did you do it? Why did you risk never being with her again?"

"Because I wanted her to be whole and healthy," he said, "Because that mattered more to me than us being together." The corner of his mouth lifted in a sad smile. "Because I really _do_ love her and I think it took me nearly dying to truly understand what that means."

"And what's that, sweetheart?"

"That sometimes love means letting go."

With a small cry, Karen lurched forward and wrapped him in a tight hug. "You are far too wise for a soon to be seventeen year old," she lamented, "It fills me with so much pride but it makes me really sad at the same time because you have grown up way too fast."

Danny reared, regarding her with a mixture of humility and surprise. "Really? You're proud of me?"

"Of course I am, Danny. How could I not be?"

He expelled a short, ironic chuckle. "Then maybe something good came out of this whole mess after all."

After his mother was gone, he placed a brief call to Jo just to chat. She brought him up to speed on everything he was missing in school, tacitly avoiding the rumors that continued to circulate about him. Instead, they strategized plans for his first day back and talked about everything he needed to catch up on. However, by the time Jo segued into a discussion about prom and whether or not she should yield to Rico's insistence that they go, the pain meds finally kicked in and Danny started to drift. Once he became too loopy to maintain any meaningful conversation, Jo ordered him in no uncertain terms to go to bed. He complied only after promising to call her later when he was less drugged. That was his last lucid memory before he slumped into his pillow and fell asleep.

His father haunted his dreams, taunting him with the disaster he always seemed to leave wherever he went. But it was his dream version of Lacey who refuted those claims, who pointed out that everything Vikram had destroyed, Danny had repaired. He wasn't anything like his father and he never would be. He would be a better man than Vikram Desai had ever been. Truthfully, he already was.

Danny was basking in her warm words, pulling her closer for his kiss when he was abruptly dragged from his dream by his mother's insistent nudging. He squinted up at her with a sleepy stare, dragging his hand across the corner of his mouth to wipe away the moisture that clung there. "What?" he croaked grumpily.

"You have some visitors," she informed him, gesturing behind her to reveal what appeared to be half the soccer team standing in their living room. Archie Yates stood in the forefront. They were all still in their uniforms so Danny could only assume that they'd come straight from practice. Karen quietly excused herself while Danny angled himself into an upright position, sensing his unspoken need for privacy.

His brows furrowed together in shock, Danny blinked several times, half convinced he was seeing things. "Um...what is this?" he asked, his voice still rough with sleep.

Half a dozen pairs of eyes turned to Archie, silently designating him as the speaker of their group. He cleared his throat nervously before he did. "Your friend Rico said you were coming home today," he explained, "We weren't able to visit you while you were in the rehab center, so we thought we'd do the next best thing and come to your house."

"Why?"

"Because I know we haven't been fair to you, Desai," Archie replied, "You got a really raw deal and we didn't really help matters by freezing you out." The team members behind him chorused their agreement with his statement. "It's way past time we started treating you like a member of this team." Yet another harmonized murmur sounded behind him. "You've earned it."

Danny barely repressed his embittered snort. "So all is forgiven now that you know I'm not a killer? Is that it?"

"We should have given you the benefit of the doubt regardless of your past long before that," Archie told him, "You've busted your ass for this team. Like I said before, you've earned it. Honestly, my issues with you had less to do with believing you were a killer and more to do with the fact you were moving in on my girl. I had a hard time getting past that."

"I'll admit that was a jackass move," Danny muttered, "But it was never anything personal against you. Lacey and I, we have this..."

"...This thing," Archie concluded quietly, "Yeah, I get that now. She loves you. It was only going to be a matter of time before she acted on it, even if you _hadn't_ gone after her."

"But now you're over it?" Danny challenged in disbelief, "The last time I saw you, you essentially vowed to make my life a living hell and now you wanna be buddies? I don't follow."

"Buddies is a leap. You're still not my favorite person but, I'll settle for us not being at each other's throats constantly. Besides, I'm dating someone else now and she's actually pretty awesome. I want to leave the past in the past. I'm sure you can relate."

"I don't need your pity, Archie," Danny told him tautly, "So you can save it."

"It's not pity," Archie insisted, "You're a damn good player, Desai, and when you heal up you'll make our team a force to be reckoned with next year."

Danny bit back a sardonic smile. "Oh, I see. I guess this is just strategy on your part then, huh?"

"Damn straight. I want to win. So rest up and eat your Wheaties, man, cause we're going to run you ragged when you come back. We need to be in top form for next year."

"Good," Danny said, relaxing for the first time since they'd all arrived, "I'm looking forward to that."

He chatted with Archie and the team a few minutes more before they decided to take their leave and let him get back to sleep. Just as they were filing out, however, Rico was being shown in by Karen. "Wow, you're a popular guy today," she teased him. However, Karen added before excusing herself, "Rico, don't stay too long. He needs to rest."

Danny rolled his eyes in longsuffering as Rico dropped down on the sofa next to him. Rico hitched a nod towards the spot the soccer team had just vacated. "So Archie Yates and his merry band of jocks..." he opened casually, "What was that about?"

"They were wishing me a speedy recovery so that I could get back on the field."

"Really? I guess that means they're ready to stop treating you like you have hand, foot and mouth disease."

Danny choked back a laugh. "That's one way to put it."

"Hmm. You probably won't have time for your geeky, Mathlete friends anymore then, huh?"

"Rico, whatever happens or doesn't happen with the soccer team has no bearing on our friendship," Danny told him, "You know that, right? You got your skull cracked open for me. You risked prison for me. I could never repay you for that. You're like a brother to me. Nothing is going to change that."

"Okay, don't say stuff like that," Rico grumbled, "because then I'll cry and that doesn't feel at all manly. Let's fist bump or something. I gotta shake this off."

"You have problems," Danny chuckled, "What are you doing here anyway? Don't you and Jo usually study around this time?"

"Guess who was assigned as your study partner and personal tutor until you get readjusted at school?" He preened and plucked at the collar of his shirt, making the answer rather obvious.

"I'm suspecting it's you and I can think of so many reasons why that's not a good idea."

"Why not? I think we have a great student/teacher dynamic."

"Only if you define 'great' as you yelling at me like a militant dictator," Danny mumbled dryly, "I wasn't so stoked about it."

"Fret not, my friend. This time will be better."

"I wasn't 'fretting' but ooo...kay..."

"I've mellowed a ton since our driving lessons. I don't know if it's the head injury or the fact I have a girlfriend now but, I'm pretty laid back about most things these days."

"You don't say..."

Lately, Danny had found himself on the reverse end of things being the one to feel uncomfortably awkward as Jo and Rico made goo-goo eyes at each other. Both he and Jo had been fairly faithful about visiting him once he transferred to a closer hospital and then later to the rehab center. He could count on seeing them at least three times a week. As a result, Danny had a front row seat to their burgeoning love and all the intimate newness that accompanied it.

They didn't attack each other with the same insatiable hunger that had often been his and Lacey's norm, but the sweetness of their exchanges were still enough to bring an uncomfortable warmth to his cheeks. He often felt like a third wheel in their presence though they did their utmost to make him feel included. Mostly, however, he envied their growing closeness, their ability to fall in love with each other without restraint or any added drama. That was an opportunity he and Lacey hadn't been afforded.

"Speaking of my girlfriend," Rico began in blatant segue, "I'm going to be meeting her and Lacey for an early dinner at Johnnycakes this evening. You should join us."

Despite the wild fluttering his heart did at the mere thought of seeing Lacey again, Danny gave a resolute shake of his head. "That is a bad idea on so many levels, Rico."

"You can't avoid her forever, Danny."

"I can try."

"She asks about you all the time, almost as much as you ask about her. I know she wants to see you. If you don't come to dinner, you should at least make the effort to talk to her. It's not good the way you left it. You guys need to clear the air between you."

"That's not a good idea," Danny said, "Seeing me would stir up too many bad feelings for her. She's in a good place right now. I don't want to muck that up."

"Well, if you change your mind about any of it, we'll be there around 5 o'clock. It would be great if you'd showed up. It's been a while since the four of us hung out together."

After Rico was gone, Danny found himself unable to fall back asleep. He kept contemplating Rico's suggestions in spite all his protests to the contrary. He didn't know if he was ready to commit to hanging out in public because lately he didn't do so well with crowds of people but, he did want to break the hanging silence between him and Lacey. More than enough time had passed. Romance aside, they had always been friends first and foremost. Their breakup shouldn't negate that.

Quickly, before he could talk himself out of it, Danny roused himself from the sofa and shuffled into the downstairs bathroom to clean himself up with the half-formed plan to drive over to Lacey's house and loiter on her front porch until she consented to talk to him. Once he was dressed in a fresh pair of jeans and a clean shirt, he went into the kitchen to locate his mother's car keys. Karen, who was seated at the island sipping a cup of coffee, jerked a surprised look at him when she noticed him up and about.

"You don't mind if I borrow the car, do you?" he asked. Though technically he still only had his learner's permit and shouldn't be driving without a licensed driver, his mother hadn't been overly strict about that fact. Still, he wanted to reassure her. "I'm not going very far."

"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, "You're supposed to be sleeping right now!"

"I was going to drop by Lacey's and see how she's been."

"What brought this on so suddenly? I thought you wanted to keep your distance."

"I did. But Rico seemed to think that it would do Lacey good to see me. And honestly?" he added softly, "It would do me good to see her too."

"Danny, this is your first day home and tomorrow is your first day of school after almost two months. Don't you think you're doing too much, too soon?"

"It's just a short drive," he reassured her, "I'll be gone an hour tops."

"Well, do you at least want to take your cane?" she fussed, "You know when you do too much it makes your limp more pronounced."

"No, Mom, I don't want the cane! I'm not eighty! God! I'm fine." He darted over to smack a kiss to her cheek. "Stop worrying about me."

"That will never happen," she murmured as he headed towards the door, "Call me if you need me."

"I will."

By the time he pulled up in front of Lacey's house, however, Danny had lost a good deal of his nerve. he sat in the car and let it idle, surveying the house with a despairing expression. Somehow the idea of dropping in on her unannounced no longer seemed like the most stellar idea. He was also very aware that this visit would mark the first time he'd actually used her front door since returning home to Green Grove which meant having to come face to face with her mother. Unfortunately, the tree outside of her bedroom wasn't an option for him at the moment. Firstly, because he doubted Lacey would welcome him climbing in through her window and secondly because, even if she did, he wasn't in any physical shape to scale that tree.

He thought about going back home but then quickly discarded the idea. It probably wasn't the best plan to confront Lacey without any preparation but now that he had expended so much effort to make the trip, it seemed like a waste to simply turn around without even trying. Uncertain, but resolved, Danny cut the ignition, climbed from the car and made his slow trip up the winding walk leading to the Porters' front door. He wasn't quite expecting for the door to swing open before he even had a chance to knock.

"Danny! Thank goodness!" Judy Porter greeted with a relieved sigh, "I was beginning to worry that something happened to you on the way here."

His brow furrowed in a befuddled frown. "Wait...wait a minute. You...you _knew_ I was coming? How?"

Judy ushered him inside. "Karen called twenty minutes ago and let me know you were on your way."

He was still in the process of absorbing that stunning piece of information when Clara Porter appeared from out of nowhere and proceeded to ambush him with a running tackle. She flung her arms around his waist with such force that his breath escaped him in a short, hushed, "oomph" and his entire frame vibrated. Clara tipped her head back to regard him with a happy smile.

"Danny! I'm so glad you're here! I wanted to come see you while you were in rehab but Mom said we'd be too much of a distraction for you!"

"Clara, take it easy on him," Judy chastised mildly, "He's still recovering from some major injuries. You can't manhandle him."

"Oops, sorry," Clara said, loosening her hold just a bit.

Danny returned her hug, still a little dazed by Judy Porter's welcoming attitude. He felt as if he'd just stepped into an alternate universe. It was a welcome change but unsettling nonetheless. "It's okay," he reassured Judy, "She didn't hurt me." He gave Clara a bear hug squeeze. "It's good to see you too, Clare."

"I guess you're here to see Lacey, huh?" Clara predicted sassily, "I'm not going to hold it against you _this time_ but, you should remember that there are other people in this house who missed you too so don't be a stranger, okay?"

"Okay, Clare," he laughed, "I won't."

He started to ask after Lacey then but the words died in his throat when she suddenly materialized behind her sister. Danny literally forgot to breathe at the sight of her. She was more beautiful than he remembered her. The thought was cliché, but true. Her long, dark hair was pinned back from her face in fat curls and she dressed in a tight-fitting white, button-down blouse overlaid with a simple, black sweater. But what truly made the ensemble was the short, black mini-skirt she wore. Danny made a concerted effort not to stare at her shapely, bare legs but that didn't stop his heart rate from increasing exponentially just by being in her presence.

"Hey," he croaked hoarsely, unable to think of anything more profound to say.

"Hey," she said in return, "How have you been?"

Danny cleared his throat several times before he was able to make a response. "Good. Good. I've been really good." His reply sounded lame even to his ears. "How about you?"

"I've been pretty good too." She stared at him in wordless longing, seemingly at war against herself with moving any closer to him. She wanted to hug him but hurt, anger, confusion and uncertainty held her back. So, instead, she fidgeted and said, "It's good that you're good. I'm glad that you're good." Her general lack of conversation savvy provoked a groaning eye roll from her younger sister.

"Really? That's the best you can do? You two are pathetic," Clara grumbled.

Judy snagged hold of her collar and began dragging Clara from the room. "That's enough out of you, young lady," she said, "Let's give them some privacy so they can talk."

Lacey and Danny faced one another in awkward silence once they were alone. "So...am I in Bizarro World or what?" he asked after an uncomfortable pause, "Your mother just invited me in like it was completely normal. Why is she being so nice to me all of a sudden? I thought she hated my guts."

"She never hated you, Danny. She just didn't know you."

"And that's changed how?"

"Let's just say she's been getting a different perspective on you through Jo, your mom and me," Lacey said, "She's been reconsidering her opinion about you lately."

"You?" he parroted in surprise, "I wouldn't think you'd have anything good to say about me, Lace."

"Why? Because you dumped me?"

He flinched and muttered, "That's a really harsh way of putting things."

"But that's what happened." Before he could begin sputtering apologies and explanations, Lacey added, "It's okay. I understand what you were trying to do. And you were right. We needed the distance from each other to clarify things."

For some inexplicable reason, Danny was troubled by her agreement rather than relieved. He didn't need her to be miserable but a little regret over how things had ended between them would have been welcome. "I'm glad there aren't any hard feelings between us."

"Of course not," Lacey whispered, "We're friends. We'll always be friends. I know that you didn't want to hurt me. You did what was best for you at the time and that turned out to be what was best for me too."

"Right."

She smiled at him, taking in his casual attire of relaxed fit jeans and a form fitting Henley. He looked really great. His hair was secured at the top of his head, which drew attention to the silver stud that glinted on the outer shell of his ear. Although she couldn't accurately determine the length, Lacey could tell his hair had grown much longer from the escaping tendrils that framed his face. However, in spite of his overall healthy appearance, Lacey could also tell that he'd lost some weight since the last time she had seen him.

"You really do look good, Danny," she told him, "Just a little thinner than I remember."

He patted his abdomen self-consciously. "Yeah, my mom's working on that. She's been feeding me around the clock. I think if I eat one more French fry I'm going to lose my mind." Danny sobered a little when he added, "You look good too, Lace. You look incredible actually."

Lacey ducked her head shyly at the compliment. "Thanks." It was while she was contemplating the toes of her black, suede ankle boots that she finally noticed how he kept shifting his weight around. "Are you uncomfortable right now?" she burst out in concern, "Do you need to sit down?"

"That might be a good idea," he admitted as she rushed forward to flank him and assist him into the living room, "It's been a while since I've been on my feet this long."

While Lacey tried not to be too aware of how wonderful he smelled, Danny tried to distract himself from her dizzying proximity by directing a glance around at the decor as she helped him get situated into a chair, noting the changes that had occurred since the last time he'd seen it. Gone were the neutral colors that had adorned the room years before. They had been replaced with bold, vibrant shades of yellow and orange, offset by bronze curios and lively wall hangings. There was a definite feminine feel to the living room that hadn't been so pervasive when Samuel Porter lived there.

"Wow, your mom has made a lot of updates in the last few years. I like it."

Lacey emitted a short giggle. "That's right. I just realized that this is the first time you've been in my living room since you came back to Green Grove."

He turned his head to tease her about using her bedroom window as a front door but completely lost his train of thought when he realized how close her face was to his. The space between them became instantly charged. They met each other's eyes almost timidly before their gazes dropped to one another's lips in mutual, unspoken appeal. By the time their eyes locked again, their breathing had become rapid and shallow. Lacey quickly straightened, angry with herself that she should still be so affected by him after he had practically ignored her for more than a month.

"So...um...should you be moving around right now when you're still having so much trouble?" Lacey wondered anxiously, "I noticed you were limping when we came in here."

"That's fine," Danny reassured her, "I still have some weakness on the left side. Sometimes it gets worse when I get tired or I do too much."

"Are you doing too much?" she charged softly.

Danny couldn't refute the possibility that he was but he made it clear to her why that was the least of his concerns. "My mom would say so, but... I needed to see you, Lace. It was important."

She crossed her arms in an unconsciously defensive pose. "Why now all of a sudden?"

"It's not sudden. I've been thinking about it for weeks but, I couldn't work up the nerve."

"Why?" she reiterated again, her impatience beginning to flare in the face of his contrition.

"Because I didn't want you to think that I did what I did because I had stopped loving you or anything...because I didn't. And I _haven't_. I'm still in love with you, Lacey."

Rather than feeling validated by the avowal, Lacey found herself simmering with fury instead. She fixed him with a flinty look. "And that's supposed to make it all better? You tell me you love me and I forget that this is the first conversation we've had in over a month?"

"I didn't think you'd want to hear from me."

"You're right. I didn't want to hear from you!" she flared, "Maybe that's because you completely tore my heart out and then walked away like I didn't even matter!"

"Lacey, if you just give me a chance to explain-,"

"-No, don't explain anything to me!" she interrupted coldly, "I don't want to hear it! A relationship involves _two_ people, Danny, making _mutual_ decisions for each other's benefit. You don't get that! You didn't even ask me how I felt or what I wanted. You just plowed right ahead without any kind of discussion whatsoever. The fact that you're here to apologize now, if that's what you're trying to do, doesn't make it right."

"Okay. I screwed up. I hurt you and I'm sorry for that. Tell me how I can fix it."

"You can't fix it," she told him, "After all, you were right, weren't you? I _did_ need to focus on myself and that probably wasn't going to happen as long as I was able to use you as a distraction. _But_..." she added when he started to comment, "...it would have been nice if you'd waited for _me_ to figure that out on my own rather than making the decision for me!"

He blinked at her incredulously. "So what are you saying? You're mad at me because _you_ wanted to be the one to break up with _me_? Is that it?"

"I didn't want to break up at all!" she flared, "There wasn't any reason why we couldn't have worked through all of this together but _you_ didn't want it that way! You wanted to go it alone just like you've always done! Well, you got your wish, Danny. You got to do it alone."

"That's not why I did it."

Lacey shrugged dismissively. "You could have fooled me."

"I was trying to do the right thing, Lacey."

"And you did it," she declared flatly, "Saint Danny is vindicated. Praise God! I went to therapy and I got the help I needed and I did it without _you_. There's no need for you to hold my hand like I'm some fragile flower. I've got this. I don't need you anymore, Danny! I came into contact with a great group of people who have been an incredible support to me. I even made a few friends while I was away _and_..." she leveled him with an impassive stare as she concluded, "I met someone."

Danny flinched and sucked in a pained breath. "You met someone?"

She lifted her chin haughtily. "Yes, I did and he's amazing. His name is Charlie. He and I actually have a lot in common. He tends to compartmentalize his feelings too and it became harder for him to cope after his father died of cancer. After that, he just kind of snapped and lost his will to keep going. I could relate to that. We had group together and we really came to lean on each other."

"That's great," Danny said in a tone that sounded as if he felt anything but great, "I'm glad you had someone."

"He's going to meet Jo, Rico and me for dinner this evening," she said, knowing full well she was hurting him and deliberately twisting the figurative knife, "You should come. I've told him all about you. I'd love for you to meet him."

"You know what? I actually can't do that," he answered as he pushed himself up from the chair, a little blinded by the blur of tears gathering in his eyes, "I told my mom that I wouldn't be gone long so I should probably get going now..."

Lacey felt the first pangs of regret as she watched him limp from the living room. Whatever satisfaction she thought she would get by throwing Charlie in his face died as soon as she realized how much pain she'd caused him. She groaned inwardly and ran after him, catching up with him just as he reached the front door. "Danny, wait! I need to explain-,"

"-No, you don't owe me any explanations, Lacey," he insisted, rushing through the door before he completely lost his composure, "I'm glad you're happy. Take care."


	38. Chapter Thirty Seven

**Chapter Thirty Seven**

"Charlie was nice," Jo remarked to Lacey after Rico excused himself to the bathroom following Charlie and his fiancée's departure, "He and Whitney seem pretty solid after everything he's gone through. They're a rare success story. Most couples wouldn't have survived the stress."

"That's because Charlie actually let himself lean on Whitney for support rather than pushing her away and trying to do it on his own," Lacey concluded rather bitterly, "Novel concept, isn't it?"

"Why do I feel like that statement has all kinds of subtext?" Jo muttered. It didn't require a gigantic leap on her part. Lacey had been reticent and moody all throughout dinner despite having been the one to coordinate the meeting. Clearly, something was eating at her. Jo knew it was only a matter of time before Lacey made the source of her aggravation known. She didn't have a very long wait.

"I don't even know why I care!" Lacey ranted fiercely, more to herself than to Jo, " _He's_ the one who did this to us! _He_ put us in this awful place! He doesn't get to make those stupid puppy dog eyes at me now just because I didn't come scampering back to him the second he changed his mind! I mean, who the hell does he think he is?"

"Um...who are we talking about right now?" Jo asked carefully.

"You know who!" Lacey huffed, "Danny! Who else? He came over to my house today."

"He did?" Jo burst out in excitement, "That's great! It's about time he removed his head from his ass." However, Lacey's dark scowl had her amending rather swiftly, "Okay, apparently, that's _not_ great." She pursed her lips in thoughtful consideration, her brow knit in a confused frown, "Um...why is it not great?"

"Because he's a clueless idiot, that's why!" Lacey cried in frustration, "I really thought that once I talked to him it would give me some kind of closure or help me to move on from him or something. I was actually really happy to see him today but then he started talking and all these feelings came bubbling to the surface and, suddenly, I couldn't decide whether I wanted to hug him or choke him to death!"

"Given that we're talking about Danny here, that seems like a pretty typical response," Jo considered, "So what's the problem? Did you two finally talk things through, at least?"

"When you say 'talk' you mean..."

"I mean have you finally stopped tormenting each other?" Jo clarified dryly.

"Um...well, no...not exactly..."

Something in the way Lacey hedged her answer made Jo groan aloud and that was _before_ she noticed her friend's guilty expression. "Oh god, Lacey, what did you do?"

"I may have led him to believe that I had moved on from him and that Charlie and I were dating."

"You did _what_?" Jo exploded without thinking, inadvertently drawing the attention of several neighboring patrons with her outburst. Embarrassed and self-conscious, she made a concerted effort to lower her tone before she spoke again. "Why the hell would you do something so stupid?"

"He told me he still loved me, Jo!"

"Oh my God, how could he be so awful?" Jo retorted with blazing sarcasm, "He should be doused in gasoline and lit on fire!"

"No, you don't understand! He was expecting for those three words to fix everything," Lacey argued, "It was like he thought that all he had to do was tell me he still loved me and I was going to fall back into his arms like some lovesick fool! I do have some dignity, you know!"

Jo massaged her throbbing temples. "I don't get it. This should be so simple," she lamented to herself, "You talk. You kiss and make up. You put it behind you. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. But nooo. Somehow you guys always manage to make it ten times worse between you without even half trying!"

"Who made what worse?" Rico asked as he dropped down into the empty space beside Jo. He draped his arm loosely around Jo's shoulder. "What did I miss?"

"Danny finally grew a pair and went to see Lacey today."

"That's great!" Rico enthused. Jo growled under her breath. He blinked at her with a fearful expression. "Okay, it's not great."

"No, it's not. And do you want to know why? I'll tell you why! Because _she_..." Jo grated, stabbing an accusatory finger in Lacey's direction, "...thought it was a fabulous idea to tell Danny that she was dating Charlie! That's why!"

"Technically, I didn't tell him that," Lacey argued in weak defense, "I _implied_ it."

Rico regarded Lacey with an incredulous look. "But why the hell would you do that?"

"That's the same thing I said!" Jo burst out.

"You've been talking our ears off this entire time about what a jerk he's been to cut you off without word and he finally, _finally_ makes a move to fix it and you make him believe you're with another guy?" Rico burst out incredulously, "Is this a girl thing? Because I don't get it."

Jo threw up her hands defensively. "Hey, do not make this into a 'girl thing!' I'm not even touching that."

"It's not like I planned it, okay!" Lacey retorted, "He was just standing there making his 'please come love me' face and it just came out." She slumped down in the booth. "I guess I wanted to hurt him like he hurt me."

"And how'd that work out for you?" Jo pressed tartly.

"I succeeded...and it didn't feel all that great. In fact, I feel pretty lousy."

"Lacey, Lacey, Lacey," Rico chided with a heavy sigh, "You gotta know that Danny didn't break up with you because he wanted to hurt you. In his own twisted way he was trying to do the opposite. Don't you realize you've only made things more complicated between you two?"

Jo nodded her agreement. "He's right! And, at this point, I'm at the end of my rope! Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to be best friends with the both of you?" she demanded, "I feel like I'm always in the middle. I'm either defending you to Danny and, if I'm not doing that, I'm defending Danny to you! I totally believe you guys belong together but you are really sucky when it comes to working through your issues! You two need to start giving each other the benefit of the doubt because you're _exhausting_ me!"

Lacey's expression hardened in affront and she started to scoot from the booth. "I didn't realize that being my friend was such a burden to you, Jo! I'm sorry for dragging you in the middle of my problems! I'll handle it on my own from here on out!"

Jo snagged hold of her wrist before she could leave. "Lacey, don't take it like that! That's not what I meant, okay! I just want you guys to work it out. You love each other."

Though she made no further efforts to leave, Lacey remained poised on the edge of the booth. "Maybe loving each other isn't enough. How exactly am I supposed to feel when he can cast me off so easily without a second thought?" she cried, "I'm up and down based on whether he trusts me or not or wants me or not and I'm so sick of it! He has all the control in this relationship!"

Rico was scoffing in disagreement before she had even finished. "Come on, Lacey! You don't think you have just as much control over him?" he challenged, "Every single decision Danny makes is put through a Lacey filter. He doesn't make a move without thinking of you first. You're his whole world! If you don't think that he is just as tied up in you as you are in him then I don't know what else to tell you."

Lacey finally relaxed back into her seat, her shoulders bowing forward. "He hurt me so much, you guys," she admitted in a suffocated voice, "What kind of idiot would I be to go back for more?"

Jo reached over to give her hand a consoling squeeze. "Lacey, I know you're angry and hurt over what Danny did to you," she acknowledged softly, "and you have every right to be to be pissed off. It was a crappy thing to do and I told him that. He shouldn't have just steamrolled over your feelings but you need to remember that he doesn't have many references for healthy, functioning relationships. He's just making it up as he goes along."

"So am I," Lacey whispered.

"Which is how I know there's going to be another screw-up," Jo replied sagely, "And the next time, it might be _yours_. I've watched my parents go through the same cycle for years but they always come out stronger and more in love. No relationship is perfect. How can it be when it's made up of two imperfect people? But you've got to have each other's backs even through the bad times or you're not going to make it."

"Why do you think I'm so angry? I wanted to be there for him to help him through his rehab and therapy but he wouldn't let me. He pushed me away just he always does! We've been through hell together and it doesn't matter! Nothing's changed for him at all!"

"Have you ever stopped to consider _why_ he did it, Lacey?" Jo challenged softly, "Put yourself in _his_ shoes for one second. You wake up in the hospital to discover that not only was it your father who put you there but your girlfriend witnessed the entire thing and suffered a major emotional breakdown because of it. Then you learn that she went into such a deep depression that she actually considered taking her own life. And then, after all of that, she proceeds to act like it's no big deal and wants to sweep the whole thing under the rug.

"It freaked him out, Lacey!" she went on fervently, "Hell, it freaked _me_ out and I had some idea where you were coming from!"

"If he had just given me the time to figure things out..." Lacey protested weakly.

"You know better," Jo refuted, "You're a runner, Lacey Porter. You had your sneaks laced up the second Danny regained consciousness. You weren't going to deal with any of those feelings because your first instinct is always to run and hide and you would have used Danny to do it."

"So what do I do?" she asked in a tear hoarsened voice.

Rico was the one to answer that. He linked his hand with Jo's before he favored Lacey with a gentle smile. "Get out of your own way and let yourself be happy," he told her, "Be honest with Danny and go from there. Trust me. I speak from experience when I tell you that you won't regret it."

It was early evening by the time Lacey reached the Desai home. After her enlightening talk with Rico and Jo at the diner, she had placed a call to her mother and warned her that she might be out late. She recognized that she and Danny had a ton of emotional issues to work through. Lacey didn't anticipate it would be an easy undertaking or a swift one. Her suspicions on that score were confirmed when, after greeting her happily and inviting her inside, Karen Desai warned her that Danny was in an inexplicably grumpy mood and would likely not be great company. The caution did not at all come as a surprise.

"You two didn't have a fight when he went to see you earlier, did you?" Karen pressed as she led Lacey into the living room, "He's been in a mood ever since he came back."

"We didn't finish our conversation before," Lacey replied vaguely, "I was hoping we could do that now."

Karen nodded her understanding. They walked into the living room together to find Danny lounging on the sofa, flipping disinterestedly through the television channels. When he glanced up and found Lacey standing behind his mother, Danny wasn't able to conceal his initial response of pure elation. However, the betrayal of emotion was fleeting and, all too soon, his countenance became an inscrutable mask.

Noting the intense and penetrating glare that Danny was directing at Lacey right then, Karen wisely decided to excuse herself to give them the privacy they needed to hash out their differences. "I'm going to run to the grocery store for a few things," she informed Danny, leaning over to smack a sound kiss to his forehead, "I won't be gone too long. You kids play nice in the meantime."

Danny barely acknowledged his mother's departure as he continued to glower at Lacey, his lips compressed in a thin line of displeasure. Lacey, for her part, continued to hover in the threshold of the living room entrance even long after she heard the back door slam and Karen exit the garage. She was uncomfortably aware of Danny's unwavering stare though she had extreme difficulty meeting it. The silence between them was almost deafening. She was in the middle of frantically formulating opening that wasn't tempered by anger when he spoke and, when he did, his words harsh with cynicism and bitterness.

"What do want, Lacey?" he demanded rhetorically, "I'm kinda tired. I'm not really in the mood to talk."

Undeterred, Lacey removed her jacket and tossed it into the adjacent chair. She surveyed him with crossed arms. "That's too bad, Danny, because I am. So, suck it up, Buttercup."

He made a face at her and pushed himself upright on the sofa. "I thought you'd still be at Johnnycakes. Did your dinner date not go according to plan?"

"We finished early."

"Oh. So, how was it? Did you have a good time? Was it everything you wanted it to be?"

"Yeah...it was great."

"That's great," he enunciated in a clipped tone, "What did Jo and Rico think of that guy?"

"His name's Charlie."

"Whatever. I don't care," he dismissed shortly, "Did they give you their blessing? I assume that's why you wanted them there in the first place...to give their seal of approval on the new guy."

"Not really," Lacey replied with some measure of satisfaction, "Mostly they were there to meet the guy who kept me from going over the edge while I was in the psych ward and to offer him congratulations on his upcoming wedding...to his _fiancée_."

Danny blinked at her, his mask of anger slipping finally. "His fiancée? But you told me-,"

"-I never said I was dating him," Lacey burst out quickly before he could complete his accusation, "You _assumed_ and I didn't correct you."

"Wow..." Danny uttered in a stunned expulsion of breath, torn between anger, incredulity and a measure of amusement, "...that was a pretty bitchy move, Lace."

"Well, you're an ass. I'm a bitch. The way I see it, we're made for each other."

He grunted at her succinct summation, unable to take even the smallest bit of pleasure in her assessment that they belonged together because she clearly believed their relationship had a dysfunctional quality to it. When he really thought about it, Danny found that he couldn't disagree with the assessment either. He expelled a despondent sigh.

"So why did you do it, Lacey? Why did you want me to think you were with someone else? You had to know that the thought of you moving on was going to hurt me."

"Yeah, I did know and that's _exactly_ why I did it! Because I was pissed off at you! You broke up with me, Danny, but it's kind of obvious that you expected me to wait around until you figured out that you were wrong and decided you wanted me back!"

"That is not true."

"Like hell it isn't! You say we're done but then as soon as you think I'm with someone else you want to act all wounded! I don't think so! You needed to feel the consequences of your actions!"

"So you decided to teach me a lesson by kicking my freaking heart out? Nice."

"Oh get over yourself, Danny," Lacey scoffed, "Spare me the melodrama. It's not like I left you twisting for _an entire month_! You got off pretty easy! If I really wanted to hurt you, I could have taken this way further!"

Danny emitted a low whistle. "Damn. You really _are_ pissed at me."

She pinned him with a narrowed look, her anger flaring anew. "You think?"

"You act like I set out to hurt you on purpose, Lacey!"

"It doesn't matter whether you meant to do it or not, you still broke my heart. You pushed me away and shut me out and it sucks!"

He dropped his head forward with a frustrated grunt. "That was _never_ my intention! I feel like I could apologize to you 1000 times and it wouldn't make a damn bit of difference so why are we doing this right now?"

"Because I get to be mad at you. I get to yell at you and tell you what a freaking jerk you've been! The least you can do is listen! You owe me that much! And, by the way, if you're getting so sick of apologizing maybe you should stop doing things you have to apologize for!" she flung back, "Or, better yet, stop shutting me out whenever you get even a little bit freaked out! You always accuse me of running but you do a pretty good job of it yourself!"

Danny made no denial to that charge. Instead, he said, "Okay, fine. You're right. I'm an ass and I ran because I was terrified. But can you really blame me?" Lacey gave him a look that clearly stated she could and she did. Danny stubbornly maintained his resolve nonetheless. "Okay then, just tell me one thing...was it really just all talk or... Would you have really gone through with it...you know...with hurting yourself?"

The stark vulnerability in his question deflated most of Lacey's remaining anger. She released a short, staccato breath. They weren't about to embark on an easy discussion she knew but this was what she wanted, what she'd requested of him. She had to meet him halfway.

"I thought you were going to die, Danny," she whispered, "I can't describe to you how horrible that felt. When the paramedics first got to us after you were shot, you were dead. You didn't have a heartbeat and you weren't breathing. Everything in my world stopped after that. All I knew was that, if you died, you were going to take with you every good thing I had in my life...you were going to take the best part of me. So yeah...I was really going to go through with it because I felt like that was the only option I had left."

"God, Lacey..."

"But I know now that I was in a really screwed up place and I needed help to get out of it," she went on, "But that was never _your_ fault, Danny. It wasn't something you did to me at all. It was years in the making and it had more to do with my limited coping skills than anything else."

"I just...I felt...I _feel_ so guilty because I know that most of your problems started because of me and because of the choices I made. You've been paying for Tara these last five years the same as I have."

"It wasn't just about Tara or you going away," Lacey clarified softly, "It was about my parents and the breakup of my home and losing the foundation of my entire world in less than a year. It was about me feeling lonelier and more scared than I've ever felt in my entire life and _never_ confronting that. One by one, I lost nearly everyone who ever mattered to me.

"You were right when you said I surrounded myself by people who didn't really know me," she continued, "I stopped letting myself get close to people because I thought if I kept my distance then I couldn't be hurt anymore. And then you came back to Green Grove and made me confront everything that had secretly terrified me for the last five years. It was really the best thing that ever happened to me. _You_ are the best thing, Danny."

Danny blinked back his burning tears as he grappled with the sweet sincerity of her words. "I'm just so scared of ruining your life, Lacey," he choked out, "It's my biggest fear. I have actual nightmares about it. I've caused such a mess already."

"No, you haven't."

"Really?" he challenged, "Look at what's happened so far. Look how bad it's gotten. Your best friend was murdered by my father. You became a pariah at school. You were hurt. Rico was hurt. Jo was hurt and all because you let me into your lives."

"That's all on your father, Danny. Not you."

"And what if I'm just like him?" he wondered softly, "He's always in my head, Lacey. I can't shake him. I can hear him saying, 'Didn't I tell you, son? Didn't I tell you that Desai men ruin their women?' It feels true and I don't want it to be. I don't want to cause you unhappiness when _you're_ one of the best things to ever happen to _me_!"

Lacey went to kneel down before him even before she'd made a conscious decision to close the distance. She cradled his face in her hands, touching him with true intimacy for the first time in more than a month, and rested her forehead to his. He sucked in a grateful breath at her proximity.

"Okay, so how about I make you a deal? A win/win, if you will because I know you like those." He grunted a small, emotional laugh as she continued, "Let's make a deal that we'll both stop running. When something scares us, we'll turn _to_ each other instead of _away_. And we won't let anyone convince us that we're not the absolute best for each other ever again. Can you agree to that?"

"I can."

Without warning, she reared back and thrust her hand out to him. Danny regarded her with a blank expression. "Go on," she encouraged softly, "Take it. Shake my hand." Although he remained confused by her request, Danny gamely complied and pumped her hand. "Hi, I'm Lacey Porter," she said, "It's nice to meet you."

Danny emitted a short laugh. "Hi. I'm Danny Desai. I'm the new kid. Nice to meet you too."

"I know. I've seen you around. I think we could become very good friends, Danny Desai. I have very good instincts about this sort of thing."

"Friends is nice. But...what do your instincts say about us being _more_ than friends?" he whispered, releasing her hand to tug her closer, "Because I'm pretty interested in that too."

"I think that can be arranged." She favored him with a dimpled smile, leaning into him once more to nestle her face into the crook of his throat. "I've missed you so much, Desai."

"I've missed you too, Porter."

Lacey lifted her head to brush his lips in a fleeting but fervent kiss with only the thought of solidifying their "acquaintance" in mind but quickly discovered that one taste of him inexorably sparked her yearning for another. That surprised her. Since beginning her medication regimen, her sex drive had become nonexistent lately. She rarely even thought about it, much less wanted it. Lacey initially attributed her lack of interest to her depression over the breakup but, because it had been so long since she'd felt truly passionate about anything, she was beginning to wonder if that part of herself had simply died. Now she realized, as she and Danny stared at one another wordlessly, her sexual desire hadn't died at all. It had merely been dormant.

With a suspended breath, she leaned forward to kiss him again, sighing into his mouth when he parted his lips and began to slowly kiss her back. It was a tentative, almost timid kiss. They nibbled at each other sweetly, shyly reacquainting themselves with the contours of each other's lips. His fingers fluttered lightly against the ridge of her cheekbones to trail down the curve of her throat towards her collarbone and then back again. Danny was inundated with the growing need to touch her but he seemed almost afraid to do so. Sensing his hesitation, Lacey reared back with a sudden intake of breath and brought her fingers to the first button of her sweater in clear invitation.

He swallowed thickly and darted a glance from her face to her fingers and then back again. "We shouldn't. I don't have anything."

Lacey offered him a shy smile. "I'm on the pill now. Got the whole sex talk from my mom and everything to go with it too." She almost laughed out loud when his eyes flared wide in nonplussed surprise. "You've missed a lot."

"Are you sure this isn't too soon for you?" he asked her even as he reached forward and began deliberately unfastening the buttons of her sweater, "We just got back together."

"Is it too soon for you?" she countered quietly, "I know you're still having pain and-,"

His nimble fingers went still. "-Lacey, my entire body could be on fire right now and I'd still want to do this," Danny declared ardently, "What do _you_ want?"

She answered by taking his hand and placing it inside of her sweater and that was enough. After that, there wasn't much more talking between them. Danny scooted forward to press a tender kiss to her shoulder as he peeled away her outer garment and tossed it aside. As he spread her blouse open to expose her warm skin to his lips and hands, Lacey rose up from her kneeling position and climbed into his lap to straddle him, affording him with greater access to her body.

He kissed her breasts gently and reverently, first through the delicate lace of her bra and then without any barriers between them at all. She cradled his head against her as his tongue twirled over her skin. His pace was unhurried and his exploration thorough. He nuzzled, kissed and sucked the rigid peaks of her nipples, delighting in her soft, hiccupping cries of pleasure. His arousal swelled and pulsed between them. Lacey rocked against him in a yearning attempt to bring him closer to her aching center. Heeding her unspoken appeal, he grabbed hold of her buttocks and angled his hips beneath hers in search of that delicious friction they were both craving. They melded together in a searching kiss, swallowing each other's rising moans of gratification.

It didn't take long for Lacey to become frustrated with the barrier of clothing that yet remained between them. She groped down between their bodies to find the hem of his shirt and brought it up and over his head, tossing it carelessly over her shoulder. However, she was brought short in her plan to explore the lean expanse of his torso when she encountered the residual scars that marred his mid-chest and flank. She dragged her fingertips over the slightly puckered skin before curving her hand around his back to feel for the scar there as well. Lacey bit her lower lip to quell its trembling.

Danny ducked his head self-consciously. "Sorry. I know they're ugly."

"No, it's not that," she uttered, blinking back her welling tears, "They're just a reminder, you know...that you almost died...that I almost lost you... Whenever I think about it, I'm back in that day and I feel..."

"Hey, hey, hey..." he soothed before she could begin to cry, "I'm right here." He grabbed hold of her hand and brought it to his lips. "I'm here with you now, Lacey. Stay with me, okay?"

She forced a bright smile. "Okay..."

Although she was a little slow to respond to his next kiss when she finally _did_ respond Lacey held nothing back. Their tongues slid together in languid strokes as they angled themselves closer, their naked torsos pressing together again and again. The rocking of their lower bodies became more frenetic, building the heat between them and leaving their skin damp and sticky with sweat. Lacey nibbled her way down the hollow of Danny's throat, her tongue creating wet, darting circles against his hot skin.

He wasn't quite prepared when she slid down his body, nipping a meandering path towards his belly. Only when she was kneeling before him once again, her body situated between his legs, did she lift her head to regard him. "How long do we have until your mother comes back?"

"If she went to Costco, we have two hours maybe more," he told her breathlessly, "She can get lost in there."

Lacey favored him with a feline smile and deliberately unsnapped the waistband of his jeans. "Good because I think we're going to be awhile."

Danny honestly tried to keep his eyes open when she took him into her mouth. He wanted to pull her hair back and watch every second. But the instant he felt her soft lips close around him, he couldn't keep his eyes open. The pleasure was intense, especially after such a long abstinence. Her tongue swirled over his sensitized tip in flitting forays. Danny gurgled out a series of keening moans, mumbling incoherent instructions for what he wanted and how he wanted it. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fisted his hands into the blankets bunched beneath him, stamping down the uncontrollable need to grab her head and thrust wildly. Eventually, he lost the fight against twisting his fingers in her hair. He writhed beneath her, drawing away from her reflexively when she would have finished him off.

She blinked at him in mixture of insecurity and confusion. "What's wrong? You didn't like it?"

"I always like it," he muttered gruffly, "But I want to make you feel good too."

They shared a brief but avid kiss before they deftly switched positions so that Lacey was on the sofa with her legs draped across Danny's shoulders and he was free to nuzzle between her thighs. The position actually caused his body to ache uncomfortably but he ignored the pain in favor of dropping tender kisses to Lacey's throbbing center. Inflamed by her hitching breaths, Danny quickly dragged her panties down her legs and tossed them aside before lowering his head to taste her fully. Lacey didn't have his same reservations about grabbing hold of him and she unabashedly fisted her hands into his hair and lifted her hips in response to the facile flicking of his tongue. He didn't stop until she was jerking beneath him and crying out his name brokenly as her orgasm rippled through her.

Lacey was still limp from the after-currents when Danny shifted back onto the sofa and, by then, he was fairly throbbing with need. His entire body was trembling. He even didn't bother completely removing his jeans, which still clung to one of his ankles or her skirt, which was bunched and twisted around her waist. Only one thing mattered to him right then and he couldn't wait anymore.

He pulled her into his lap for a hungry kiss, groping between their bodies to line himself up with her entrance. Danny knew the instant he pushed inside her wet, contracting walls that he wasn't going to last long and he told her so. He framed her hips with his hands and pumped urgently beneath her, driving inside her body with rapid, beating thrusts. Lacey bit her lip to stifle her cries and held herself poised above him, her breasts bouncing vigorously with the force of his rhythmic pounding. He swept his thumb back and forth across the distended bud of flesh between her swollen folds. The satisfying friction he created caused her to contract around him again and again.

It all proved to be too much for him to handle. Danny maintained his self-control for less than a minute. He managed to grunt out his warning only moments before he climaxed. He pressed his body high and hard against her, circling his hips as his orgasm burst forth from him in a quick series hot, explosive spurts. His keening curse of satisfaction was long and loud and mingled with Lacey's own gratified moan as she continued to grind down against him, seeking her own completion and finding it only a few, short seconds after he did. When the last of the quivering shocks had passed, they collapsed together into the sofa cushions and rumpled blankets in a sweaty tangle of arms and legs, panting harshly.

They were both left shaking in the aftermath. Lacey burrowed her face in the crook of Danny's neck while he brushed his fingers lightly through her hair. They were so undone that it would have been the perfect moment to say something profound and heartfelt. Instead, Danny squinted up at the ceiling and asked somewhat breathlessly, "So who the hell is 'Charlie' anyway?" He sounded so confused and irritated that Lacey couldn't help but crumple into drowsy giggles.

She spent the next ten minutes explaining to him that everything she'd told him about Charlie was true with the exception of the fact that they were romantically involved. Danny insisted upon her remaining in his lap while she explained herself. It was his unspoken way of laying his claim to her, even if he'd never admit to it outright.

"First of all, Charlie is in his last year of college and high school juniors aren't his thing. Second of all, I wouldn't be interested even if he was. And third of all, he's very much in love with his fiancée so it's all a moot point," Lacey told him in conclusion, "You don't have any reason to be jealous."

Danny grunted noncommittally. "So you knew he was going to show up with her today?" Lacey ducked her head with a sheepish nod. "You little liar," he admonished her with a growing smile, "You would have been so screwed if I would have agreed to come to Johnnycakes after all."

"Yeah, but I knew you weren't going to agree," Lacey retorted cheekily, "You're predictable like that."

He brushed her tousled hair back from her face. "Because you knew I still loved you."

"Right."

"And you still love me too?" The statement was half declaration, half question.

Lacey nuzzled against his nose. "Yes, Danny. I love you. I never stopped."

He smiled at her and gathered her closer. She thought he might fall asleep then because he looked so thoroughly exhausted but instead he entreated softly, "Okay, so tell me everything I missed the past month. Start at the beginning. Don't leave anything out."

She lifted her head to peer at him. "You really want to hear this?"

"I really want to hear this."

"Okay, well you already know that I spent ten days in the mental health day spa," she said, earning an irreverent chuckle from him, "There's not much else to tell. After that, I started outpatient therapy with the same guy who helped Jo."

"Really? How do you like him?"

"He's very big on sharing and by that I mean he's always saying, 'Tell me how you feel about that, Lacey?' It was a little off-putting at first but, I'm getting used to it now."

"My therapist is the same way. 'Talk, Danny. Share, Danny. _Unburden_ yourself, Danny.' I don't think she'll be satisfied until I start crying during one of our sessions."

"You mean you haven't yet?" Lacey asked with some surprise.

"I'm still working through the anger portion of my therapy," he explained briefly, "I'm too furious to cry. We'll get there eventually, I'm sure. But we're not talking about me right now. I want to hear about _you_."

"There's not really much you don't already know." Lacey leveled him with a meaningful look. "I know you've been grilling Jo and Rico about me this entire time. You've had a blow by blow account since day one."

"No comment."

Lacey started to tease him further when something else occurred to her. "Oh wait," she said in afterthought, "There is one thing you don't know yet. Well, really a couple of things actually now that I think about it."

"Like what?"

"Well, first off...I found out that my father is gay."

Danny blinked at her incredulously. "You said what now?"

"Yeah, it's true. He came out to Clara and me last week. That's whole the reason my parents' marriage failed. I guess my dad got tired of living a lie and decided he was done. He left my mom for another man. They've been living together since he left Green Grove."

"Oh, Lacey. I'm so sorry. Are you okay with everything?"

Her mouth quirked in a humorless smile. "Do you want my real answer or the politically correct one?"

"Tell me what you really feel," he encouraged softly.

"Okay well, I want my dad to be happy. I don't think anyone should have to suppress who they are _but_...I wish he'd had the courage to figure all of that out before dragging my mom into it. And, at the same time, I feel stupid for even _thinking_ that because if he had figured it out then Clara and I wouldn't exist. I feel like he acted like a selfish ass but at the same time I'm grateful to him and inspired by his courage. It's complicated."

"I'll bet," Danny murmured.

"But we're trying to work it out now," Lacey assured him, "I met his boyfriend. His name is Bradley and he seems like a nice enough guy. Strangely enough, he and my mom get along really well. He's almost the male version of her, which is a little freaky but also weirdly comforting in a way. So I guess we're getting to a better place."

"Still, it has to be a shock for you."

"Yeah..it threw me for a loop," Lacey agreed morosely, "But mainly it made me think about us...or, more specifically, what I wanted us to be." She pinned him with an earnest stare. "I don't want to have the relationship my parents had, Danny, or your parents did, for that matter. We can't have secrets from each other. We can't hide from each other. Promise me that won't happen again."

"I promise," he vowed fervidly, "You know everything that is in my heart, Lacey Porter. From this point forward, you always will."

She smiled and smacked a sound kiss to his lips. "Good."

"Okay, that's one thing. What else don't I know?"

Lacey tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmmm...Archie and Sarita are dating now."

Danny blinked at her, his mouth falling open in disbelief. "No way!"

"Yes, way. They asked me for my blessing and everything. I guess Archie felt like he needed my permission since he cheated on me with Regina. He's trying to atone or something, which is silly since, technically, I cheated on him with you."

That revelation provoked yet another incredulous blink from Danny. "I'm sorry... _what?_ Start over. Archie cheated on you with Regina?"

"So, I always wondered why he and Regina didn't get along," Lacey recounted without bitterness, "Well, that's the reason. Apparently they hooked up last summer when he and I first started dating and Archie always felt guilty about it. He said that's why he hated being around her."

"That must have been rough to find out," Danny considered, "Maybe not about Archie because I know you're over him but Regina... She was your friend. You trusted her."

"I did trust her...to a degree. But there was a ton of stuff I didn't know about her. In a lot of ways, she was a stranger to me. It's hard to feel betrayed when I think about it like that."

Danny tucked a stray curl behind her ear in a gesture of comfort. "Are you okay with that?"

"I've made my peace with the lies she told and the games she played. She's dead. Resenting her is pointless. And I'm glad Archie is happy now. He and Sarita seem like they're really into each other so it all worked out."

He gave a mock shudder at the mental picture her words created. "You know, Archie and the guys were here earlier and he mentioned that he was seeing somebody but I never imagined that person was _Sarita_. They seem like they'd be pretty incompatible, don't you think?"

"Well, people say the same thing about us and look what happened." She started to say more when it belatedly dawned on her what Danny had just told her. "Wait a second...Archie came _here_ to see you?"

"Him and half the soccer team."

"What did he want?"

"To extend me an official warm welcome to the Green Grove Ligers and to give me his blessing for dating you," Danny replied wryly, "I didn't have the heart to tell him we had broken up."

Lacey directed a meaningful nod down to where their bodies remained intimately joined. "Yeah...well, so much for that." At the mere mention of their positioning, Danny began to lengthen inside of her. He nudged against her with his hips in unfurling desire. Lacey rolled her eyes at him in exasperation. "Really, Danny? Your mom will be back soon. We don't have time for this. Aren't you tired yet?"

"Not _that_ tired! This is actually the most energy than I've had in weeks. Besides, you brought it up!"

"I was making a point," she moaned petulantly as he began to nuzzle against her throat.

He kicked off his jeans entirely, finally removed her hopelessly wrinkled skirt and then angled her down onto the sofa before joining her. "Hmm...what point is that, babe?"

"That Jo was right after all..." Lacey sighed when he positioned himself between her legs, "Our breakups never take."

Danny reared up on his forearms to peck a kiss to the tip of her nose. "I agree. We _are_ epically bad at breaking up. We should probably stop doing it altogether."

Lacey drew him closer against her with a contented smile, closing her eyes in anticipation of his kiss. "Yeah...we probably should."

* * *

 **A/N: Just the Epilogue after this and then this puppy is complete. Thanks to everyone who read, commented or both on this story. Feedback is always a wonderful reward when sharing something like this and is very appreciated. I am very late coming to the Twisted fandom so, as a newbie, I was really nervous about how this story would be received. While I hated the direction the writers went I never hated Jo as a character. I saw how she could be a great ally to Dacey. I always saw the potential for true friendship with the Twisted trio and I was really disappointed with the way the show handled that. This story was my attempt at fixing that but also giving Dacey the attention and care they didn't get on the show. Hopefully, I suceeded in doing both.**

 **Thanks again for reading.**

 **Dee**


	39. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

"If you hurt her, I'm going to have to kick your ass."

Rico paused in the act of straightening his bowtie and darted an agitated glance from his reflection to where Danny lounged comfortably on his bed, ankles crossed, magazine neatly unfolded in his lap. "Gee, thanks for that, Danny," he muttered grumpily, "Threats of bodily harm really help to lessen my anxiety!"

"What did you expect?" He thumbed disinterestedly through Rico's copy of _Science Monthly_ before flinging the periodical aside. "You're deflowering my best friend tonight. It seemed appropriate."

"She's deflowering _me_ too, you know! It goes both ways."

"Which is why I essentially told her the same thing in regards to you...just with a slightly different phrasing."

Rico turned his attention back towards the mirror and, with a false show of confidence, began straightening his tuxedo jacket. His bravado only lasted a split second, however. All too soon, he slumped forward with a groan and pressed his forehead into the full length mirror. "I'm not ready for this," he muttered, "I don't know if I'm ready for this."

Danny cast him a sympathetic look. "Rico, there's no rule book that says you have to lose your virginity tonight. You don't have to treat it like some rite of passage. If you want to wait some more then you should wait."

Groaning anew, Rico slowly pivoted to face Danny directly. "It's not that I don't feel ready," he told his friend, "I've been ready for this for more than a year. I'm terrified of making a fool out of myself."

That was no understatement. Rico had been fantasizing about Jo Marie Masterson for so long that she was practically built up to goddess like status in his eyes. He had been ridiculously enamored of her long before she had ever known of his devotion. His love and admiration had only grown exponentially since they began dating, which hadn't been for an incredibly long while. In fact, that night, incidentally the night of their junior prom, would mark his and Jo's four month anniversary. The romantic in him couldn't imagine a more appropriate time to show Jo in every way how much she meant to him. The insecure halfwit in him, however, only saw potential for crushing humiliation and disaster and, unfortunately, Danny wasn't really helping to ease his mind on that score.

"You have to get it out of your mind that tonight is going to be anything remotely close to perfect," Danny advised him sagely, "It's going to be awkward and weird and the first time you actually seal the deal, you're going to last about twenty seconds so I'd advise you to have several condoms handy. In fact, it'd be a good idea to do that for the next few months."

"Gee, you're really doing a stellar job of building my self-confidence here, buddy," Rico muttered sardonically. He favored Danny with a sarcastic thumbs up. "Keep up the good work!"

Danny emitted a short laugh. "Don't take it that way. It's going to be amazing because you're with the woman you love. That part is going to be incredible. But it's not going to be perfect and if you go into it tonight thinking that it has to be, you're not going to have a good time and neither is Jo."

Rico sank down into his desk chair. "So what do I do?"

"I'm going to give you the same advice that was given to me," Danny said, "Listen to her body. Treat her with dignity and respect. Just love her and everything else will come naturally."

"You're sure about this?"

"Absolutely positive. Speaking from experience here."

Rico squinted at him in surprise. "Really? Lacey was your first?"

"I spent five years in juvie, Rico. And since I'm into _girls_ , it's not like I would have had a whole lot of opportunities for sex during that time. Of course she was my first!"

"Oh...right."

"But, that doesn't really matter too much because Lacey still would have been the first and only even if I hadn't gone to juvie. I was waiting for her. She's it for me."

"Yeah...that's how I feel about Jo," Rico confessed softly.

"Then focus on that. Transmit all of that feeling into action and you'll be fine."

"Thanks, Danny," Rico sighed in profound gratitude, "I feel a little better now."

"Good."

A great deal more relaxed than he had been five minutes prior, Rico rose to resume putting the final touches on his tuxedo by pinning a small, red rose to his lapel. "I can't believe you and Lacey aren't coming to prom tonight," he remarked to Danny as he worked, "It feels very backwards. This is more you guys' thing than me and Jo's."

"You mean it's more _Lacey's_ thing," Danny corrected with a smile, "But we just decided to sit this one out. Lacey and I still aren't too great with crowds so a night at home eating popcorn while watching old movies sounds a lot better than going to prom right now."

"We're still set to hang out afterwards, right? Late dinner/early breakfast at Johnnycakes?"

"Lacey and I have a bet going on whether you and Jo will actually show up," Danny laughed, "I'm thinking no."

Danny was still chuckling over Rico's absolute insistence that he and Jo would show up as planned when he arrived home to get the living room ready for his and Lacey's movie night. Like Rico, his mother also expressed concern over the fact that he and Lacey had opted not to attend prom but Danny reassured her that it was something both he and Lacey wanted. Besides that, he had his own romantic plans in place for that evening and he told Karen so.

"You're sure I'm not going to put a crimp in your plans because I'll be here?" his mother asked him.

"Mom, it's not like we're going to have sex," Danny replied with an eye roll, "We always wait until you leave the house to do that."

When she lunged at him in a mock attempt at throttling, Danny danced out of her reach with a merry laugh. "That's not funny, Daniel," Karen admonished him sternly, "I know you're doing it but I certainly don't need to hear about it! Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Lacey arrived a few minutes later carrying several plastic bags full of items. Danny greeted her with a sound kiss before dutifully taking hold of her parcels as she crossed over into the foyer. "What's all this?"

"I got several kinds of popcorn because I wasn't sure what you were in the mood for," she told him, "There's extra butter, sour cream and onion, ranch flavor, ragin' cajun, cheddar and extra salted. My mom even had the great idea that we could mix a few."

Danny grunted a stunned laugh. "How much popcorn do you think we're going to eat tonight, babe?"

She offered him a cheeky smile. "Well, you said we were going to have a movie marathon. I took you at your word."

Still smiling, they went into the kitchen together to pop a few bags. While Danny busied himself at the microwave, Lacey exchanged hugs and pleasantries with Karen Desai. In the three months since she and Danny had gotten back together, Lacey had grown incredibly close to his mother as well, not only due to her relationship with Danny but also because of Karen's growing friendship with Judy. Their families had spent quite a few dinners together in recent months and even several outings. It was the first time that Lacey and Danny had felt anything close to a functioning family unit since they'd been small children. Of course, it wasn't the typical family unit but it worked well for them nonetheless.

"So what do you two have on the playlist tonight?" Karen asked eagerly.

When Lacey pulled out her small list itemizing all the movies they planned to watch that evening, Danny couldn't help but snort a laugh over her meticulousness. She stuck her tongue out at him before turning her attention back to Karen. "Let's see...tonight Turner Classic Movies offers us _Casablanca_..."

"...always a classic..." Danny interjected.

" _Cat on a Hot Tin Roof_ ," Lacey continued, "And Paul Newman is so hot in that. His eyes are incredible."

"Hey now!" Danny bleated in protest, "I'm standing right here. Besides his eyes aren't all that."

Lacey threw him a mischievous look before she finished, "And finally _Imitation of Life_ and _Splendor in the Grass_. We're not quite sure if we'll get through that last one because it has some touchy subject matter but I hear that Warren Beatty and Natalie Wood are really good in it."

"They are," Karen agreed, "It's a great coming of age movie but it _is_ very sad."

"You should join us, Mrs. Desai," Lacey declared impulsively, unaware of the fact that Danny was standing behind her making dramatic chopping motions across his neck at his mother, "I brought plenty of popcorn."

Karen took her time about answering just to make Danny, who was practically going into contortions behind Lacey, sweat a little. "No, I think I'll leave you kids to it tonight," she said, "I'm just going to go upstairs and curl up with a good book." She pressed an affectionate kiss to Lacey's cheek. "You two have fun though."

Lacey watched her leave with a fond smile and then announced to Danny once Karen was out of earshot, "Your mom is so amazing. I think she needs a boyfriend."

His reaction to that was swift, immediate and thoroughly horrified. "Where the hell did that come from?"

She shrugged. "I just think it's a shame that she's alone."

"She's not alone. She has me."

Lacey made a face at him. "I specifically meant male companionship of a sexual nature, Danny."

He made quite a production of gagging after that. "Ugh! No! Don't even go there, Lacey!"

"Why not? She's really hot and she has a lot to offer. She could have any guy she wanted."

"I...I don't want to have this conversation," Danny cringed, "I don't want to discuss her perceived 'hotness' or any guys she could or couldn't have or what she can offer them! Just no! She's my mother for crying out loud!"

"She's also a sexual being, Danny. She's going to get laid again whether you like it or not."

The last of her words were completely drowned out because Danny had already clapped his hands over his ears and begun singing, "Lalalalalala...I can't hear you!"

Lacey shook her head in smiling chagrin. "You're such a child."

Danny jauntily popped a kernel of popcorn into his mouth. "Yeah, but you love me anyway."

In the twenty minutes they had before the first film started, Danny and Lacey set up the living room with snacks and drinks for their movie marathon in between giggling kisses and idle small talk. "Are you sure you're okay with staying in?" Danny pressed Lacey as they worked, "I know prom is a big deal."

"No," Lacey corrected softly, "Being with you is a big deal. Besides, there's still senior prom and we are definitely going to that." She leveled him with a meaningful look. "So you might want to start planning now, Desai. Go big or go home."

"So noted," Danny laughed, "But are you sure you don't feel like you're missing out...you know with the dress and the limo and all the fancy frou frou?"

"Not really. I kind of lived vicariously through Jo tonight so it was okay. Although, she would have gladly ripped off her dress and burned it in effigy if she could have."

"Why? Was it hideous?"

"No, it was beautiful. _She_ was beautiful! She's going to knock Rico completely off of his feet tonight," Lacey said, "But you know how Jo is...anything she considers 'girly' is her Kryptonite. She was all 'arghh, dress!' 'Arghh, makeup!' 'Arghh, hair products!' It was insane. Mrs. Masterson and I practically had to hold her down at certain points."

"That's a spot on imitation of her. I'm impressed."

"Shut up," Lacey laughed with a playful nudge of her shoulder, "I know that she was mostly nervous because she and Rico are finally doing the do tonight."

"Yeah, he was pretty much a wreck too. I think we were much cooler about our first time."

"Well, we are the coolest," Lacey considered wisely, "What did you tell him?"

"That the first time was probably going to be really quick and he should have a backup condom."

Lacey giggled. "That's the same thing I told Jo. We've been together too long, Danny. We're starting to share a brain."

He dropped down onto the sofa and pulled her down with him. As she cuddled against him and draped her arm across his waist, he pressed a tender kiss to her temple and whispered, "There are worse things I can imagine."

She snuggled closer with a contented sigh. "So what do you want to do this summer?" she asked him, "Just another six weeks of school and we're out until the Fall. It's never too soon to start making our itinerary."

"I suppose 'winging it' is out of the question."

"You've known me practically my entire life, Danny Desai. I don't 'wing' anything."

Danny grunted a laugh. "Well, I'm pretty sure I'll have my hands full with soccer this summer and working to get into shape for the new season. I've made a lot of progress in the last three months but I still have a long way to go," he considered, " _And_ , I was thinking that maybe I'd take a page out of my mom's book and get a job. I need to save up for a car of my own. I can't bum rides off of you forever."

Lacey angled a look up at him. "First, I don't mind giving you rides. Second, you've got all that money from the government settlement," she reminded him, "You can just use some of that to buy a car."

"Yeah, I know but, I try to avoid touching that money whenever I can," he murmured, "It's basically hush money and whenever I think about it, I get angry all over again."

"It's also money that you _earned_ ," Lacey reminded him, "You paid for it with your blood. So you shouldn't have any shame in using it for school or a car or whatever else you want to use it for. The Feds owe you that much."

"Well, I _did_ use some of it for one thing in particular," he hedged timidly.

Before Lacey could discern his intentions, Danny leaned forward to pull free a wide, flat, velvet black jewelry box that had been hidden beneath the sofa cushions. He passed the box to Lacey with a shy smile. "This is for you."

"You got me a present?" Lacey teetered sentimentally, "But I didn't get anything for you."

"This isn't about me, Lace." When she continued to stare at the box with brimming eyes, Danny nudged her. "Go on," he encouraged with a laugh, "Open it already."

With a trembling smile, Lacey flipped back the lid and sucked in a soundless gasp. Nestled in a band of white satin was a gleaming bangle bracelet made of white and yellow gold in a swirling pattern and embedded with a neat row of sparkling diamonds. Lacey lifted the delicate trinket for closer inspection with shaking fingers. "How much did this cost, Danny?"

"It's doesn't matter how much it cost," he whispered, "Do you like it?"

She regarded him with glistening eyes. "I love it. It's beautiful."

"There's an inscription on the inside," he told her, "You should read it."

Lacey's lips twitched with laughter as she silently read what he'd had written there before reciting the words out loud, "It says, 'World's Best Girlfriend.'"

"And you are," Danny insisted fervently, "You're the world's best everything and someday, Lacey Deanna Porter, I hope you might consider adding the world's best wife to that list as well. No pressure."

For the second time in a five minute span, Lacey had difficulty finding her breath. "Are you asking me to marry you right now?"

"Not quite yet," he prefaced with a self-deprecating smile, "I don't really have much to offer you at the moment. I have no job, no car. I'm still in high school and I live with my mother. Those things don't actually scream husband material. _However_ ," he added as Lacey emitted several teary giggles, "when we're both ready, I'm _definitely_ going to propose to you. So be ready, Porter."

Overwhelmed with love for him, Lacey leaned forward to brush his lips in a tender kiss. "Oh, don't worry. I'll be ready, Desai. Because when you do propose, I'm _definitely_ going to say yes."

 **The End**


End file.
